Nobody's Perfect
by joliesse43
Summary: What if Zach wasn't as perfect as everyone thought and it was Summer who paid the price? Can Ryan and the gang help her? PG-13 for language, violence, and maybe some sex. Ch.11 Finally Up!
1. Default Chapter

Hope you enjoy. I have taken some creative liscence with the facts of the show, but not much.

Disclaimer: I do not own the OC or its characters, except for my season 1 DVD, so please don't sue.

Summer had always though of Zach as being perfect for her. Perfect in the sense that he would never ask too much of her or get to close to her. She didn't like being alone and Zach was someone she could go out with and laugh with, but not someone that could hurt her the way Cohen did. Summer had had lots of men, well boys really, in her life, but the only one she opened up to was Seth and he left her.

Zach was an Abercrombie version of Seth. He was just dorky and goofy enough that he reminded her of Seth, but he was also a tall, good looking water polo player. It didn't hurt that his dad was a senator. Zach's mom had even had some work done but Summer's father, discretely of course. The boyfriend and the match seemed perfect, but then nothing is perfect.

"Zach, I can't believe you just punched Seth!" Summer cried as they sped away in his Mercedes. "What the hell were you thinking" she shouted as the SUV speed through the late night traffic. "God damn it Summer," Zach yelled as he swerved to narrowly miss an oncoming car, "I am sick of hearing about Seth. If he was so great and you guys were so in love then why did he leave you with nothing but a note last summer?"

She didn't reply. She couldn't, she had asked herself the same question many times and had no answer. In fact, it was that question that lead her away from Seth towards Zach. "Maybe we should take a break, I am not going to let you use me as some kind of Seth Cohen replacement" Zach suggested angrily. "No! Zack please, just pull over so we can talk about this" Summer begged.

The truth was that even though Summer hadn't planned on letting herself fall in love with Zack, she had. It wasn't the same love as she felt for Cohen, but she liked Zach and would rather be with him than not be with him. That's love, right?

"Zach, please just slow down and we can talk about this" Summer begged in a teary voice. By now his temper had begun to subside and Zach slowed down. "Ah shit Summer, I don't know what happened. I though we were past this Cohen thing and then I saw you with him and I just lost it. I'm sorry baby."

Zach stopped the car in front of Summer house. She looked at him with his big brown eyes and floppy hair and said, "It is over with Cohen, I promise. You are the one I want to be with and I guess I need to do a better job of showing you. I'm sorry."

Zach sighed and slipped his arm around Summer, pulling her closer to him. "Look, it's been a long night and I'm tired. Just give me a kiss and I'll call you tomorrow." She did and then she slowly walked towards her front door, watching the black Mercedes slip silently into the night.

Summer walked into her empty house and wished she had some kind of pet to greet her. Maybe she should get a cat or one of those little dogs like Paris Hilton has. Ew! Nevermind, the though of pet hair sticking to all her clothes was not appealing to Summer. Maybe she could get a hairless cat, but then she remembered the episode of Friends were Rachel got one and it turned out to be really mean. Ok, so no pets. Summer would just have to continue coming home to an empty house.

Summer went up to her room and slowly undressed as she replayed the events of the night in her mind. She still couldn't believe that Zach had punched Seth. Once again Seth hadn't fought back. Ryan really needs to teach that kid how to fight. Summer sighed. She had a headache. Maybe if she took a nice hot bath it would help.

The bubbles were just reaching the top of the tub when Summer leaned over and turned off the water. She was just starting to step in when her cell phone rang. It was Marissa. "Hey Sum, where are you?" a slightly drunk Marissa asked her. "I just got home, what's up?" Summer replied as she stared longingly at the bath tub. "I heard what happened with Zach and Seth and I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"I'm fine," Summer replied "I am not the one that got punched in the face. Maybe you should call Seth and ask him." Summer sighed again, she didn't like where this conversation was going. "I know Summer … it's just that Zach seemed really upset and I thought something might happen, you know like last time."

Summer closed her eyes and wished that she had never told Marissa what had happened over the summer. It really wasn't a big deal and Marissa thought it was. "Coop, everything is fine, really, thanks for checking. I was just getting ready to go to bed. I'll see you in school on Monday. Have fun meeting DJ's family tomorrow."

"Uhh" Marissa groaned indicating she wasn't looking forward to the next day "Oh well, there is no way anyone in his family can be worse than my mom. By Summer." "See ya" Summer replied before turning the power off on her phone.

She wanted to have a nice, uninterrupted, relaxing bath. Unfortunately, as she settled into the cucumber melon bubble bath, unwanted thoughts kept popping into her mind. Zach had been really mad tonight. It was the angriest he had been since that night before school started and Summer had to admit that for a few moments in the car she had been scared. She leaned back in the tub and tried to think about something else, but her thoughts kept going back to Zach and that night in August.

She and Zach had been at a party at Jess's house. They had both been drinking all night and had had a great time at the party. In fact, they had ended up upstairs in one of the many bedrooms in Jess's huge house. They lay on the bed kissing while their hands explored each other's bodies. Then Summer half groaned, half whispered Seth's name. She hadn't meant to. She had hardly thought about him that day, but somehow it just slipped out.

Zach was furious and he pulled Summer up and threw her against the wall. She hit her back on the corner of the window sill causing her to yelp in pain. He grabbed her upper arms and held her there. "God dammit Summer, I am not Seth Cohen." He screamed at her as he gripped her arms even more tightly. "I am the one you are with Summer. Say my name. Say it, dammit" he yelled.

"Zach, you're hurting me! Please let me go" Summer pleaded. And he did. Zach had calmed down quickly and was extremely sorry for what had happened. He had been the perfect boyfriend until tonight. But he hadn't hurt her, he had hurt Seth. Somehow it was always about Seth. Summer didn't know what to do about that. She still loved Seth, and probably always would, but she didn't want to be with him. She couldn't, not after the way he had left her. But she still wanted him in her life, she still wanted to be friends with him. Somehow she had to get Zach to understand and accept that.

Summer hadn't meant for Marissa to find out what had happened that night. She had gone home and passed out, only to be woken up by Marissa calling to remind Summer that she was supposed to come over and hang out. Summer had jumped out of bed half asleep and gotten dressed. She didn't look at her self in the mirror before she threw her shirt on over her bikini, otherwise she would have seen the bruises on her arms and back.

Summer and Marissa were going to hand around the pool and work on their tans while drinking Marissa's latest conconction. Marissa gasped when Summer took off her shirt. "Oh my God Sum what happened?" Summer realized that what Zach had done must have left bruises and she hurriedly pulled her shirt back down. "It's .. ah .. nothing" Summer said as she hurriedly tried to think of a good lie to tell Marissa. She always had trouble lying to her best friend.

Marissa studied Summer intently and finally said in a quiet voice, "Come on Sum, lets go inside." Summer had tried to convince Marissa that what had happened wasn't a big deal. "He didn't mean to hurt me. I mean I said Cohen's name when we were making out, of course he was pissed" Summer said trying to convince both Marissa and herself.

"He just kinda pushed me up against the wall and my back hit the window sill." Summer took a long drink of what Marissa called a Newport Iced Tea, which tasted like it was just a mix of a bunch of different kinds of alcohol. "Summer you have bruises, and not just on your back" Marissa countered.

"Look Marissa, it's not like I am like Teresa, or anything. I am not some poor high school dropout with a black eye dating some loser who does like manual labor or something. Zach's dad is a senator. Please don't mention this to anyone, I promise its not a big deal." It took a few more minutes for Marissa to finally drop the subject and she hadn't mentioned it again until tonight. Although she had kept a watchful eye on Summer and Zach.

Summer shifted in the tub, knocking over a bottle of shampoo and snapping her back to the present. The water in the tub had gone cold. "Shit!" Summer swore aloud as she shivered and stepped out of the tub. God, now I am never going to get to sleep. Summer walked over to her medicine cabinet and grabbed the bottle of Xanax she had swiped it from her step-monster who never even noticed it was gone. Summer swallowed the little blue pill and crawled into bed. As she drifted off to sleep she mentally chanted the positive affirmations her shrink had taught her.

I have the rest of the story pretty much planned out, but I am pretty busy so if you like the story and want to read more, let me know. Thanks


	2. 2

Summer was so excited. She and Zach were going to a fancy party where she would get to meet Arnold, er ah Governor Schwarzenegger! The party was going to be at an old mansion outside of Newport and everyone who was anyone in So Cal would be there. Summer and Marissa had spent two full days of shopping to find the perfect dress for the event. She had actually bought 3 dresses.

One was long silver Chanel evening gown that made her look about 25, a shorter little black dress by Donna Karan, and a funky multicolored Calvin Klein dress that she knew the minute she got home she would probably never wear. Good thing Daddy's credit card has an insanely high limit. In addition to the dresses she had bough 5 pairs of shoes and countless accessories. Oh well, how often does she get to party with the Terminator?

Actually Summer didn't really like any of Arnold's movies. She was more of a romantic comedy girl, but she had dated enough boys that she had seen more action movies that she could count. Why did guys think a good movie for a date was one where a half-man half-cyborg went around blowing people up? Or in Seth's case a half-man half-spider. At least that movie had Kirsten Dunst and a romantic storyline to go along with all the violence.

Marissa was really jealous that Summer was going to this party. Actually it was a fundraiser for the Tsunami victims. Caleb and Julie were invited, but apparently Caleb didn't have enough pull anymore to get any extra tickets. Actually, he probably didn't was Marissa to go, especially since she would show up with the guy who mowed most of the party-goers lawns.

The relationship between Marissa and Caleb had been strained before, but after Caleb's revelation about his "error in judgment" Marissa was no longer civil to him. Sure, she didn't really like Lindsay because Lindsay and Ryan had hooked up, but the way Caleb had crushed the poor girl by calling her a mistake was the final straw. Things were so bad between her mom and Caleb that Marissa probably could have moved back in with her dad, if he didn't live on a sailboat.

But Summer and Zach were going and since Zach's dad was a Senator they would get to meet all kinds of important people. Summer had spent the entire day getting ready, starting off with a two hour spa treatment, including facial and seaweed wrap, followed by a manicure and pedicure and ending up in Flavio's chair for highlights and a trim. Now she had only 2 hours to get herself dressed and ready to go.

"Shit!" Summer exclaimed as she looked at the clock. How could it already be 6:00? For a moment Summer let herself think what it would be like to have a mother here to help her get ready. Someone to help her do her hair and take a picture to be kept for posterity. But she would have to settle for the opinions of a small plastic horse.

"Oh my God Summer, you look amazing!" Zach exclaimed as he picked her up, precisely at 8:00. "You look pretty hot yourself. Is that an Armani Tux?" she asked running her had up and down his arm enjoying the sensation of the rich material on her fingertips. "Uh yea, my dad insisted that I get a new tux tonight. He wants to make sure that I don't embarrass him in front of everyone."

"As if you could be an embarrassment to your dad" Summer replied with a little huff. "What would you like get a B in advanced calculus or something." Zach shifted uncomfortably, "Well yea, actually." Summer looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Look we better go or we are gonna be late for our big night" Zach said as he extended him arm out and escorted Summer to the car.

"So your dad isn't happy with a B in advance calc?" Summer inquired. "They wouldn't even let me in that class and if I got a B I would probably die of excitement." Zach shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He cleared his throat and said "A B is like an F to my father. Remember I am supposed to go to Harvard and become the president or at very least a senator." He snorted and pointed ahead, "Wow the place looks amazing."

The house did look amazing, actually it was more of a mansion than a house. It was an old Victorian set high up on a bluff overlooking the ocean. The house was ablaze with lights and partygoers mingled on the high decks overlooking the cliff. "Wow" Summer said softly. Zack pulled up to the valet parking and he took Summer's arm and escorted her up the step and into the party.

Inside was a sea of beautiful people, most of them dressed in black. Summer was glad she had gone with the silver Chanel. She felt like she could hold her own against anyone as long as she was dressed well. Zach's dad soon hurried over and they spent the next 45 minutes meeting and smoozing with all sorts of political type. Actually despite the glitz and glamour Summer was a little bored.

"Hey Zach, I was hoping you would be here" a voice called from behind them. Zach turned and saw his best friend from boarding school Brad. "Oh my God Bradford, how's it going?" Summer watched as the two guys hugged and waited to be introduced. Zach eventually remembered his manners and introduced Summer to Brad. "This is Brad Johnson we went to boarding school in Maine together for 4 years."

Brad was cute, not cuter than Zach, but pretty cute. He had red hair though and Summer didn't like guys with red hair, unless they were named like Brody or something. Soon two more guys in tuxedos joined Zach and Brad and they began to reminisce about a summer trip to Europe they had all taken years ago. One of the boys fathers had just bought a new Ferrari and they wanted to go check it out.

Zach looked at Summer apologetically. "I'm sorry, this is probably kinda boring for you, but I haven't seen these guys in forever. Do you want to come check out the car?" he asked with a shrug of his shoulders. "Ah, no thanks, I'll just hang out here. I though I saw Cameron Diaz earlier, maybe I'll go stalk her or something" Summer replied. "You could go talk to my mom" Zach suggested. "No thanks, I'd rather not embarrass myself tonight."

"You should probably go spend some time with her. She is really a nice person if you get to know her" Zach offered. "Zach, she hates me and thinks that I am a moron" Summer said her voice rising a little. Zach's mom was a sore spot with Summer. Summer was rarely intimidated and hardly ever felt like embarrassed of herself, but when she was with Zach's mom she felt like a worthless idiot. "Summer," Zach sighed "she doesn't hate you, you guys are just different. Please go talk to her." And with that he kissed her on the cheek and left with his friends.

Great, Summer thought. Here I am at a fabulous, albeit slightly boring party and I am all by myself. Looking around the room she spotted Zach's mom talking to several women across the room. Summer figured she might as well get it over with and headed towards her. "Summer, hi!" his mother greeted her as she walked up. "Well, you look … very nice" Zach's mom said after an awkward pause. She then introduced Summer to her friends and they continued their discussion of the plight of Somalian orphans. Summer stayed as long as she felt she had to and then politely excused herself.

The encounter with Zach's mom left Summer slightly shaken. No matter what she did she wouldn't be good enough for Zach's family. They didn't care that she got a one-of-a-kind Marc Jacobs top for only $350 on sale at Fashion Island. They didn't care that she could tell if someone had had a chin implant just by looking. They only cared that she couldn't name all the high ranking officials in the U.N.

Summer looked around and Zach was still no where to be seen so she headed over toward the bar. She needed a drink and she deserved one after all she had put up with tonight. Maybe a couple drinks would restore the confidence that Zach's mother had crushed. It didn't matter that Summer wasn't even 18, it was always easy to alcohol at these events, but tonight in her cocktail dress Summer definitely looked 21.

"Vodka rocks please" Summer told the bartender. She sat at a nearby table and sipped her drink, watching people mingle and dance. Where the hell was Zach, she wondered. He had been gone for 45 minutes supposedly looking at a stupid car. "Is this seat taken?" a male voice asked from behind, startling Summer. "I…uh" she stammered. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you its just that all the other seats are taken. My name is Travis" he said while extending a hand."

"I'm Summer, sure you can sit down." Travis was good looking, damn good looking Summer caught herself thinking. And he was older, way older, like probably 30. "I'm just waiting here for my boyfriend, he went with his friends to look at some stupid car " Summer blurted out suddenly aware that she indeed had a boyfriend and wasn't free to flirt. Zach thought that Summer flirted too much and most of the time Summer wasn't even aware that she was doing it.

"Well it must be a really amazing car to leave you sitting her alone looking like that" Travis said as he flashing his dazzling smile at her. "Yea, well you know boys and their toys. I'm sure you have a few toys that you would abandon your girlfriend for." Travis laughed, "You're right about that, I have too many toys and that's probably why I am sitting here alone."

Summer looked around trying to spot Zach. She was enjoying taking with Travis and flirting with him made her feel more in control. So she didn't know about orphans in Albania, but she could still wrap a man around her little finger. That was a damn useful skill. She and Travis talked for 20 minutes. He was one of the governor's lawyers and spent most of his free time surfing. Thank God he doesn't have Sandy's eyebrows Summer thought to herself.

After a while he asked her to dance. Summer hesitated, she didn't know if Zach would be angry with her for dancing with someone else. Oh well, screw him. He is the one who left me for an hour to go hang out with his boys. Summer just hoped that no one would blow her cover. She had told Travis that she was a 21 year old junior at USC. The song was a slow one and Summer settled into Travis's arms. They weren't even halfway through the song before Summer felt someone grab her arm.


	3. 3

A/N Short chapter, but I am going on a short vacation this weekend that involves drunken gambling so I thought I would post anyway. When I come home broke, hung over, and smelling like I spent the weekend in an ashtray some reviews would definitely brighten my day. Oh and there is a violent scene, so you've been warned.

They weren't even halfway through the song before Summer felt someone grab her arm.

"We are leaving now" Zach growled at Summer through his clenched jaw. "Hey man, let her go," Travis said as he stepped toward Zach. "Travis no, its ok. We had better go, thanks for keeping me company." Summer realized now that dancing with Travis had been a mistake and she just wanted to get Zach out of there before he made a scene. She knew that he had been drinking, since he smelled like Marissa, and this was not the time nor the place for a fight.

"Zach, let go of my arm!" Summer hissed as Zach half-dragged and half-escorted her out of the party. Zach didn't say anything. Summer knew that he must be really pissed if he wouldn't even talk to her. For just a moment Summer considered not leaving with him. Marissa's words from the summer came back to her. "If he hurt you once what makes you think he won't do it again?"

Summer was still trying to decide what she should do when they reached the entrance and Zach gave the valet the ticket. "Zach, we really don't have to leave. I know that you were excited to see Brad. Travis is way too old for me. We were just dancing, please don't let it ruin the evening." Summer knew that she was rambling, but she just wanted Zach to say something, anything. Zach stayed silent, staring out into the night, not willing to meet Summer's gaze.

They stood in silence for what seemed like forever until the valet brought Zach's car around. "Zach why don't you let me drive, I've had less to drink than you." And I'm not angry, Summer silently added. She flashed back to the wild ride Zach had taken her on after he had punched Seth. "Summer, I'm fine. Get in the car." Zach said flatly, his tone making it obvious that who was going to drive was not up for discussion.

Summer quietly sighed as she opened the door and slid across the leather seat. She was so excited about this evening and it had turned out to be a total bust. They drove in silence for several minutes, until Summer couldn't contain herself any longer. "Zach, you didn't have to drag me off the dance floor. Travis and I were doing nothing wrong. You left me by myself for over an hour. What was I supposed to do, hang out by myself?"

"Do you know how I knew you were with him?" Zach asked, finally breaking his silence. "My father came to find me and told me I better get back to the party because my girlfriend was with another guy. Do you know how I felt?" Zach was starting to shout. "Do you know how stupid it made me feel when my dad told me, in front of my friends, that my girlfriend was making a fool of me!" He pounded his fist on the steering wheel. "God dammit Summer!"

Summer was starting to get scared. She didn't understand how someone as rational as Zach was normally could turn completely irrational with one word or action. "Zach you are like way overreacting. I didn't nothing tonight to embarrass you. You embarrassed yourself by dragging me off the dance floor like some caveman. And why, because your daddy said too?" Zach snapped when Summer mentioned his father. Before she realized what was happening, Zach punched her in the side of the face, slamming her head into the window. She could feel the blood streaming down from her nose.

Summer screamed as the Mercedes came within inches of an oncoming truck. "Stop!" she yelled. "Zach pull over before you kill us." Zach kept driving . Summer couldn't believe what had happened. She never though that he would actually hit her. All she knew was that she had to get away from him before she got hurt any worse.

Finally, after several more minutes Zach stopped the car at a little park on the edge of town. Summer immediately grabbed her purse and jumped out of the car. Zach came around the passenger side and started toward her. Summer tried to back up, but she got tangled up in her dress and tripped, falling flat on her back on the gravel parking lot. Zach grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her up.

Before Summer could react Zach hit her in the face again. Summer crumpled to the ground and lost consciousness for a few seconds. When she came to she could hear Zach screaming at her. She couldn't focus on exactly what he was saying, but she could make out the words "slut" and "my father." Summer tried to crawl away, but he kicked her hard in the ribs causing her to lose her breath.

Through her foggy mind, Summer heard Zach's car pull away. She managed to sit up, but the action caused a sharp pain in her side. Summer sat frozen for a moment, her tears mixing with the blood on her face. What the hell was she going to do now? She was miles from her house and judging by how much it hurt to stand up, there was no way she could walk home.

She groped blindly in the dark for her purse and was relieved when she found the cell phone inside was still intact. But who was she going to call? She knew that she should probably call 911, but she really didn't want to deal with the police. She thought about Cohen, but she knew if she involved him and his parents she would end up telling her story to the cops. That left Marissa, Summer dialed her number, praying that Marissa wasn't drunk for once.

Marissa wasn't drunk. She was actually just on her way home from hanging out with DJ when she got Summer's call. She is probably calling to gloat about what a fabulous time she had at the party, Marissa thought as she answered the phone. At first Marissa couldn't understand what Summer was saying. She thought that maybe Summer was just wasted, but when she heard Summer crying she knew something bad had happened.

"Marissa I need help. Zach went crazy and I think I'm hurt and I am at some park and I don't have a car and I can't walk and I don't want to call the police and its dark and cold" Summer blurted out when Marissa answered her phone. "Wait, slow down Summer, I can't understand you. What happened?" Summer took a deep breath to calm herself and began again.

Marissa's mind raced as fast as her mustang as she headed towards Memorial Park. That fucker. I can't believe he hurt her. I swear to god that I will kill him. These thoughts kept running through Marissa's mind as she drove towards Summer. At first she didn't see Summer when she pulled into the dark parking lot. Then out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of silver. She must have worn the Chanel.

Marissa gasped when she saw Summer. Summer was a mess. She was shaking, there was blood everywhere, her hair was tangled, and the beautiful silver dress was torn and dirty. "Zach did this," Marissa asked as she was pulling out her phone. Summer nodded and asked who she was calling. "The police, he should totally go to jail for this" Marissa replied as she tried to clean up Summer's face with some Kleenex. "No!" Summer cried desperately. "Please don't call the police. I don't want to deal with all that. I just want to go home."

"Well, you at least have to go to the hospital. Your nose might be broken. You're freezing, lets get you into the car and then you can decide." Summer felt her nose and said "I don't think its broken, I thought I broke it when I was little but my dad told me if I could wiggle it like this then it wasn't broken." Summer tried to stand up, but she couldn't balance on the 4 inch heals of her Prada shoes. Marissa gently helped her up and got her to the car. "I am not going to the hospital," Summer declared weakly. "If I go they will call the police and everyone will find out what happened. Please Marissa."

Marissa looked at her best friend and considered her options. Summer was obviously hurt and she should probably go to the hospital, but she wasn't going to take Summer against her will. Maybe if she took Summer home and got her cleaned up she could talk her into going. Marissa sat quietly, unsure of what to do next. She didn't know what to do or how she could help her friend. Then suddenly Marissa though of someone she could call. Even though they hadn't really talked lately she knew that he would come. She flipped open her phone, scrolled through the contacts, and when she saw Ryan Cell she pressed send.


	4. 4

A/N Thanks for all the reviews, since I did come home hung over and broke they were especially meaningful! I can assure you my sister's 21 bday way celebrated in style. I can't believe it's only Tuesday, it is going to be a very long week. Thank god for FanFic and reviews!

Ryan laid on his bed reading a book. Lately he had been doing a lot of reading. Ever since he found out that the girl he like was actually his aunt. Now that Seth spent most of his time at the club with Alex they didn't have a whole lot of time to hangout. He had just begun a new chapter when his cell phone rang. He saw that it was Marissa calling and given the fact that it was almost midnight, he knew that something was probably wrong. Especially since he and Marissa really didn't talk anymore. Ryan didn't really talk to anyone much anymore, he just hung out in the pool house and studied.

"Hello," Ryan said sleepily after flipping open his phone. "Oh God Ryan, I'm so glad you answered "Marissa said breathlessly. "I'm with Summer and Zach just beat the shit out of her. She doesn't want to call the police or go to the hospital, so I am going to take her home, but I don't really know what to do." Marissa had Ryan's full attention now. "How badly is she hurt," Ryan asked, the concern evident in his voice. "I don't know, she doesn't think her nose is broken, but there is a lot of blood."

"Where is Zach and where are you guys?" Ryan asked as he frantically searched around his room for some clothes to wear. "I don't know where Zach is, he just left her at Memorial Park. We are on the way to her house, can you meet us there? Wait hold on," Marissa said to Ryan as Summer whispered something to her. "Ryan, she really doesn't want Seth or the Cohens to know about this." Ryan figured he could just sneak out of the house, but there was no way he could take a car.

"Marissa, come pick me up. I'll be in front of your old house. I don't want you guys going to Summer's house alone. Zach might be there." Ryan could hear Marissa sniffling on the phone so he knew she was crying. "Marissa everything will be ok," Ryan said softly "just come pick me up and we will figure everything out."

Ryan was surprised, but not shocked by the phone call. He had never really like Zach and he had seen Summer flinch once at the beginning of school when Zach reached out to take her arm. Ryan could spot abuse from a mile away and he kicked himself for not watching Summer and Zach more closely. He wondered if Zach would make another appearance tonight. He picked up his leather wristband and put it on. If he was going to kick some ass tonight he wanted his trusty cuff on his arm. Then he silently slipped out of the side door of the pool house, careful to stay out of sight of the main house.

"Why did you call Chino?" Summer asked when Marissa hung up the phone. "Because I don't really know what to do when my best friend gets beat up by her boyfriend." Marissa was having trouble keep herself together. The tears in her eyes made it hard for her to see the road. She cleared her throat and said, "Ryan knows how to deal with this stuff and if Zach comes back tonight he can take care of him."

"Do you think he will come back?" Summer asked fearfully. She hadn't though that far ahead yet. All the sudden the thought of Ryan was very comforting. "Does he know that your dad is out of town?" Summer nodded her head. "Well if he does show up we won't let him come near you." Marissa said as she slowed down to pull over in front of her old house.

Marissa pulled the car over next to the curb and got out to let Ryan in the back seat. "Hi" She said as she fumbled with the seat release. Her hands were trembling and she had trouble getting it to release. Ryan saw this and he reached down to pull the lever. He put his hand and her arm and said, "Why don't you let me drive." Marissa smiled gratefully as she climbed into the back seat. Ryan slid into the drivers seat and looked over at Summer who was still huddled in the passenger seat. Though it was dark and the dim overhead light didn't allow him to get a good look at Summer, he could see the blood that was caked on her face. "Hey" he said softly "How are you feeling?"

Summer took a deep breath and told Ryan that she felt like she had been run over by a truck. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?" Ryan asked. Summer nodded her head. Ryan swallowed and said "Alright, lets get you home and check you out, but you might have to see a doctor." They were all silent on the rest of the ride. Ryan had a million questions, but the first thing he wanted to do was make sure she wasn't hurt too badly.

When they pulled up at Summer's house it was dark and Ryan asked if her dad was out of town. "He is in Paris with the monster," Marissa filled him in. Ryan pulled the Mustang up as close to the front door as he could. He got out and walked around to open Summer's door. He could hear a sharp intake of breath as she stood up.

When they got inside Ryan could finally see Summer's injuries. As Ryan looked at Summer's face, bloody and swollen, he could feel his anger rising. Part of him hoped that Zach did make an appearance tonight so that he could do to Zach what Zach had done to Summer. Ryan caught himself before he got too carried away. The last thing Summer needed right now was to deal with more anger, no matter how justified.

"Ok" Ryan said while thinking, "Summer where is your first aid stuff?" Summer pointed down a hallway and said, "I think most of it is in that bathroom." Ryan nodded, "Marissa, we will start down here. Could you go get something for Summer to change into?" Marissa nodded and headed upstairs. Ryan helped Summer down the hall toward the bathroom.

"So you've had to deal with this stuff a lot huh" Summer asked as she sat down on a bench in the bathroom. "Yea" Ryan replied not offering any further explanations. Ryan couldn't believe he was here, about to clean up the effects of violence once again. Back in Chino, Ryan had naively believed that if you were rich and beautiful life was somehow easier. Now that he had witnessed life from the rich side, he realized that life in Newport was still life. The rich just wore Chanel instead of Walmart when they got beat up, or arrested, or drunk.

Ryan dug through the cupboards and assembled the various first aid supplies he would use. While he was doing this he asked Summer to tell him what had happened. She told him what had happened in the car and at the park. "I don't remember much of what happened at the park, it all happened so fast." Summer admitted. "Did you blackout?" Ryan asked. Summer admitted that she had, but only for a few seconds.

"We will have to watch you tonight to make sure you don't have a concussion. Which means you won't be able to take anything for the pain tonight." Ryan said as he bent over Summer with a washcloth to wash the blood off of her face. Both Summer and Ryan suddenly realized how close they were. They had known each other for over a year and they had probably never been this close.

Ryan held Summer's jaw softly in his left hand while he wiped her face with the other hand. He saw her wince as he gently washed her nose, but she didn't say anything. "Sorry," Ryan said, "I'm trying to be gentle." Summer nodded with fresh tears in her eyes. She knew that Ryan wouldn't try to hurt her. He had a comforting presence and he was good at what he was doing. Summer tried not to think about why Ryan was such an able nurse.

"I just want to check you nose to see if it is broken" Ryan said when he had finished with the washcloth. He agreed with Summer that it didn't seem like it was broken. As soon as he had finished, Marissa appeared behind him with some clothes for Summer. "I'll wait out here" Ryan said as he stepped out of the bathroom shutting the door behind him.

As Ryan waited he wandered the empty hallway of the large house. He hated seeing Summer like this, with her usually beautiful and happy face now sad and bruised. Ryan didn't understand how Zach could want to hurt her. As far as Ryan was concerned, any guy would be lucky to have Summer as his girlfriend. It's strange, but Ryan had never really thought of Summer as her own person before. He had never really had the chance to, Summer had been off limits since he moved to Newport. He knew her first as Marissa's best friend and second as Seth's girlfriend. Seth. Ryan groaned as he thought about Seth. Even though Seth was with Alex now, he still had feelings for Summer. Keeping this from Seth would be hard, but telling him what had happened would be even harder.

Ryan heard the bathroom door open behind him. "Are you done in here?" Marissa asked. "Yea, but I should check her ribs" Ryan replied as he walked into the bathroom. He turned to face Summer who was standing before him. "I .. um .. need to check your ribs, so do you want to … uh lift your shirt up" Ryan stammered uncomfortably, his face reddening. Summer responded by pulling her shirt up to just below her breasts revealing an ugly looking bruise on her right side.

Ryan felt his anger return as he saw the bruise. "So he kicked you pretty hard." Summer nodded her head. Ryan knelt down until his face was level with her stomach. He cautiously felt the bruised area and he felt reassured when he could find no obvious breaks. Summer's skin felt hot to the touch, but Ryan wasn't sure if that was due to the heat in her skin or his. "Well," Ryan said as he stepped away "I don't think there are any major breaks, but you can never tell without an x-ray. All they will do any ribs are broken or cracked is tell you to keep them wrapped."

Ryan stopped speaking and looked Summer straight in the eyes. "If you are in a lot of pain tomorrow, you are going to the doctor. There are ways to go to the doctor without getting the police involved." Summer was touched by Ryan concern. Usually, Summer liked to take care of herself. She prided herself on the fact that she didn't really need anyone in her life. Right now though, Summer was glad that she had Ryan and Marissa to help her. Suddenly Summer felt exhausted, the events of the night had been traumatic, to say the least, and all Summer wanted to do was crawl into bed. She knew that Ryan and Marissa probably wanted to talk about Zach, but Summer was too tired right now. They would have to wait.

As Summer stepped out of the bathroom and headed down the hallway, her legs felt weak. Summer began to sink backward toward the floor, but she was caught by a pair of strong arms before she hit the ground. Ryan picked Summer up, careful not the jostle her sore ribs, carried her upstairs, and laid her on her bed. Fresh tears started to roll out of Summer's eyes.

Without thinking, Ryan bent down and wiped the tears away with his hand. "Summer, I know everything is all fucked up right now, but it will be ok" Ryan whispered. "I just don't think I can deal with this" Summer whispered back. Ryan smoothed back the hair on her forehead. "Right now the only thing you have to deal with is getting some sleep. I'll wake you up in a couple of hours just to make sure you don't have a concussion and I'll be downstairs if you need anything." Ryan stood up to leave the room. Summer grabbed his hand to stop him and said, "Thanks Ryan, for everything."

Ryan went back down stairs to where Marissa was sitting. "She'll be asleep soon," Ryan reported. "So how are you holding up?" Marissa didn't answer right away, she got up and crossed the room to the bar on the other side. "It's been a rough night" she replied pulling a bottle of Vodka out from under the bar. Marissa saw Ryan's look of consternation as he saw the bottle. "Don't worry, I'm not going to get drunk. I just need a drink or two after everything that has happened."

Ryan considered this and walked toward her saying "Yea, actually a drink might be nice." He looked behind the bar and was surprised at the number of different bottles of alcohol. "Dr. Roberts likes his alcohol," Marissa noted dryly as she sat down on the couch, holding her glass of vodka. "Summer and I have been stealing his alcohol since like 7th grade." Ryan walked over to the couch to join her. "So her dad is gone a lot huh?" Marissa took a big drink and said "Yea, I've never heard of a plastic surgeon who has to travel so much for business."

"What about her mom?" Ryan asked quietly. He didn't think he had ever heard anyone mention Summer's mom before. "Her parents got a divorce when Summer was like 3 or 4 years old. Her mom met some Swiss guy and went to live with him in Europe. I guess she just really didn't want kids." By now Ryan had finished his drink. He really wanted another, but he knew he shouldn't since he would have to be awake and alert tonight.

"Does she ever talk to her mom?" Ryan asked. "I don't think so, not for a long time anyway," Marissa answered trying to remember their last conversation about Summer's mom. "That must have been really hard for her, growing up without her mom and with her dad always gone." It was a family dynamic Ryan could relate to, he had just never imagined that Summer's life had been anything but perfect. "Yea, she used to spend a lot of time at my house. But Summer's tough, you know, so …" Marissa's voice faltered. "I … I, think that's what makes all this even harder. Despite her family Summer has always been the strong one, the one who takes charge of everything. I am usually the messed up one. I guess I am not very good at taking care of her."

Ryan and Marissa talked for a while longer turning the conversation towards happier topics. By the time it was time for someone to go wake up Summer and check on her, Marissa had consumed several more drinks and was curled up on the loveseat snoring. Ryan headed upstairs lightly knocked on Summer's door. He didn't hear and sounds coming from inside so he opened the door and snuck in.

Summer was asleep, huddled against the wall clutching a pillow between her arms. She seemed to be sleeping deeply and Ryan wanted to just let her sleep. He knew better, however, and tried to wake her up by saying her name. Summer stirred in her sleep, but she didn't respond. Ryan crossed the room and got closer to her bed and said her name again, but she still didn't wake up. He then leaned over and gently shook her shoulder. Summer awoke with a start, sitting straight up in bed, causing her to gasp in pain from her sore ribs.

She looked around the room, confused for a moment as to why someone was in her room waking her up and why she was afraid. Then it all came back to her. "Summer, it's ok, it's me Ryan" he said sensing her confusion. "Ryan, that's right," she said breathing heavily. "Just lay back down, I just wanted to make sure you were ok. I know you must hurt pretty bad, but do you have any sharp pains or is your head any worse?" Ryan rearranged the blankets as Summer moved back into the center of her bed. "No, I don't think so" she answered sleepily. "Good, I'll let you get back to sleep." Ryan got up and turned to leave the room. "Ryan," Summer called timidly. He turned and looked at her. "Could you stay with me, just until I fall asleep?"

"Sure," Ryan replied as he settled into her chair. "Thanks," Summer said and several minutes later he could hear steady breathing indicating that she was asleep. While he was waiting for her to fall asleep he made a decision. Tomorrow he would pay a visit to Zach. He didn't want to just sit back and wait until Zach made his move. Someone needed to make it clear to Zach that he was never going to hurt Summer again and Ryan wanted to be the one to do it.

XXXXXXXXXX

I know, I know still no Seth and the Cohen's. I promise they will be in the story, but it's not their story. More angst and ass kicking to come.


	5. 5

Ryan woke up at 6:00 still sitting in the chair in Summer's room. He yawned as he got up, stretching his arms out over his head. Summer was sleeping soundly and Ryan didn't feel that he needed to wake her up. He had woken her up twice during the night and she seemed to be ok. She was going to be sore when she woke up, so she might as well sleep. Her bruises looked much worse in the day light and he knew that they were going to get worse. It usually took a few days for bruises to reach their ugliest stage.

As Ryan stared down at Summer he had to swallow a lump in his throat. She didn't deserve this, no one did, but Summer was one of the last people on earth he thought would end up in this situation. Ryan planned to go home for a bit this morning and then he would stop by and see Zach. After that he wasn't sure what he would do. He wanted to come back here, but he wasn't sure if Summer wanted him to. It would probably be better if he didn't get too involved. He would just make sure that she was safe from Zach, and then he would leave her alone. Ryan bent over and caressed the side of her face with his fingers, then he turned and walked away.

Ryan found Marissa asleep on the couch where he had left her last night. He touched her arm to wake her up. "What is it, what happened?" Marissa said as she sat up. "Nothing happened, I just need a ride home. I need to get home before Sandy and Kirsten notice I am gone." Marissa got up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "Ok, let me go to the bathroom and we'll go."

"So when are you coming back?" Marissa asked as she turned off of Summer's street. "Cause I am probably going to be in trouble with my mom for not coming home last night." Ryan shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I don't think I will come back" he said. "Why not?" Marissa asked. "I don't know … I mean, " Ryan searched for the right words, but Marissa didn't give him time to speak. "So you can save everybody else, sometimes people you don't even know, but you can't spend one day with Summer when she is in trouble?"

"Look Marissa, it's not like that. I'll make sure she doesn't get hurt again, but I don't think I should get involved in all this." Ryan explained. "Why not, you never had a problem involving yourself before. I guess you don't care about Summer." Marissa was pissed now. Ryan had made a career out of helping people and he was now refusing to help her best friend. "I do care about Summer," maybe more than I should, he thought to himself. "If she wants me to come over I will."

Marissa gave him a strange look as she pulled up in front of her old house. "Well, ok then. Thanks for coming over last night" Marissa said. "Yea, make sure Summer has my number. I'll see you later." Ryan opened the door and stepped out of the car. "Ryan!" Marissa called as he started to walk away. "You're going to see Zach aren't you?" Ryan stopped and walked back to the car. He met her gaze, but he said nothing.

"Good," Marissa finally spoke. "What are you gonna do?" Part of Marissa wanted to go with Ryan, maybe she could give Zach a few kicks herself. "I'm not sure. He just needs to know he can't do this again and since she's not going to the cops…." Marissa leaned over the seat and gave his hand a quick squeeze. "Call me when you get back" she said. Ryan agreed, then he turned and headed towards the pool house.

Summer was confused when she woke up. It took a minute for her to remember the events of the previous night. "Oh my God!" she groaned out loud. Her head was throbbing and when she tried to sit up the pain from her side was so intense it brought tears to her eyes. She laid back down and took a deep breath, trying to collect herself. Ryan, she remembered, had been with her most of the night. She woke up once and saw him sleeping awkwardly in her pink chair. She probably should have woken him up and sent him to sleep in one of the guest rooms, but she didn't. She liked having someone in the room with her.

Ryan's presence last night had been the only thing that kept her from totally freaking out. She had kinda hoped he would still be here when she woke up. Shut up, she told herself. Ryan's got better things to do than baby-sit some chick who got herself beat up. Summer's thoughts quickly focused on Zach. She wasn't sure how she felt about him right now. She knew she never wanted to see him again, but it was hard to wake up and hate someone you had loved for almost half a year. As another pain shot through her nose, she decided maybe it wasn't so hard to hate him.

Marissa's quiet knock on the door interrupted Summer's thoughts. "Hey Sum, are you awake?" Marissa asked as she stepped into her room. "Yea, but I wish I could sleep for like two weeks and wake up when this is all over." Marissa didn't really have a response to that. She thought it sounded like a good plan. "So how's the pain, is it bad?" Marissa asked as she sat down on the edge of Summer's bed. "Well, my head feels like someone hit it repeatedly with a hammer."

"Ryan said that you could have a painkiller this morning if you need it, but you should probably have something to eat first so you don't get sick." Sometimes when Marissa and Summer were really bored, they would sneak into the step-monster's medicine cabinet and try different pills. She knew for a fact that Summer got nauseated when she took painkillers with no food.

"So Ryan left this morning?" Summer asked casually. "Yea, he wanted to get home before anyone noticed he was missing. He said to tell you to call him if you need anything." Summer was kinda bummed that Ryan had left. She wanted him here, but she wasn't going to call and tell him that. "So do you want a Percocet or a Vicodin?" Marissa asked on her way out of the room. She didn't want Summer asking any questions about Ryan. She didn't want to tell Summer that Ryan was going to Zach's and that Ryan didn't seem to want to be around Summer.

Ryan sat at the table eating breakfast with Seth. He was having trouble keeping his mind on whatever the topic of Seth's latest rant was. He felt bad not telling Seth. "So you look beat man, what did you stay up too late last night reading? Wild and crazy Saturday night with Ryan!" Ryan looked up at Seth and let out a little laugh. Well the wild and crazy part was right. "So what are you doing today? Alex and I were going to dive up the coast and check out the waves, You wanna come?" Seth asked through a mouth full of Captain Crunch.

"No, thanks though. I've got some studying to do at the library." Ryan said while pouring himself another glass of milk. "God Ryan, your just so nice and boring now. All study and no fight make Ryan a dull boy." Seth was right, Ryan's life had been dull until last night. Ryan didn't really mind being dull, it was something he rarely got a chance to be. "Well what about tonight, will you come to the club? I think the band sucks, but it would be fun to hang out." Seth offered. "Yea, maybe. We'll see tonight."

"So are you guys taking the car, cause I kinda need one today." Ryan asked. "No, we are going to take Alex's car. Which means we will probably spend half the day pushing it around and trying to get it started. Which I'm not really all that good at, are you sure you don't want to come?" Seth said as he put his dishes in the dishwasher. Ryan shook his head. "Alright man, have fun studying. I'll call you later." Seth said as he left the kitchen.

Ryan was antsy. He had tried reading and playing video games, but nothing could hold his attention. His thoughts kept jumping back to Summer and Zach. He wanted to beat the crap out of Zach when he went over there today, but he knew he shouldn't. Doing that today would call attention to what happened to Summer and she didn't want that. He understood why Summer didn't want to go to the police, but he didn't necessarily agree with it.

And then there was Summer herself. Ryan couldn't deny that there were some sparks between him and Summer. He was impressed by how well she dealt with everything last night. She didn't freak out and get hysterical. She was in a lot of pain, but she didn't complain about it. Summer was tough and independent and he liked that. However Summer was off limits. She was his ex girlfriend's best friend and his brother's ex girlfriend. It doesn't really get more off limit than that. At least they weren't related. Oh well, none it really mattered anyway, since the timing was terrible. "Screw it!" Ryan said as he got up from his bed and tossed his video game controller aside. He was tired of waiting, it was 10:00 and he was going to see Zach. "

"Ryan Atwood, I'm a friend of Zach's," Ryan said into the speaker at the large gates in front of Zach's house. The gates opened and Ryan drove up to the main house. The house was a large and impressive Victorian. A few years ago, Ryan would have been intimidated by the house and thereby its owners. Now he found himself trying to decide if the house was larger and worth more than Marissa's house. As Ryan walked up the steps to the front door, the door was opened by a woman Ryan assumed was Zach's mom.

"Good morning" She greeted him cheerfully. "It's nice to meet you. Zach speaks very highly of you." Ryan couldn't help but wonder what she would think if she knew what her son did last night. " Zach didn't mention that you were coming over today, is he expecting you?" Ryan nodded, "Yea, I just need to pick something up for school." Zach's mom pointed at the staircase and said "Go on up, his room is the 3rd door on the left. I think he is awake." Ryan headed up the stairs feeling slightly guilty about lying to Zach's mom. The guilty feeling quickly dissipated as Ryan stood in front of Zach's door. He took a minute to compose himself and then he knocked.

"Yea" came the muffled answer through the door. "It's Ryan, we need to talk." Ryan said quietly so Zach's mom didn't hear him. Zach panicked. He had woken up this morning with a terrible headache and a sore hand. He felt sick when he remembered what had happened last night. He couldn't believe that he had lost it like that. Zach had been waiting all morning for the police to show up and haul him to jail, but now Ryan was here and Zach was pretty sure he knew why.

Ryan knocked again. Zach walked across his room and opened the door. Ryan stepped in and closed the door behind him. Zach began to speak first. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" is as far as he got before Ryan grabbed Zach and threw him against the wall. "Shut up!" Ryan growled menacingly "you don't get to speak right now." Zach tried to walk away from Ryan, but Ryan grabbed him and held him in place with his forearm across Zach's throat. "You are a worthless piece of shit. You hurt Summer and you are never going to do that again." Zach started to speak again, but was silenced by more pressure across his throat.

"Just listen," Ryan said. "You are going to pay for what you did to Summer. She doesn't want to call the cops so you get to deal with me instead. Truthfully, I'd love to kick your ass right now, but that would bring more attention and Summer doesn't want that. So I am here to tell you that if you come near Summer again you will get hurt. Badly." Zach was getting red in the face from the pressure of Ryan's arm. He was pretty sure that even though he was bigger than Ryan, Ryan could fuck him up. "You will stay away from Summer. Do you understand?" Ryan waited for Zach's response. Zach said nothing. "Do you understand?" Ryan said again more forcefully. Zach finally squeaked "Yes."

Ryan released Zach and stepped back from him. "We aren't done. You will pay for this." Ryan said as he walked towards the door. He could feel himself loosing it and he knew that if he didn't get out of there he might do something. "I need to talk to her," Zach said "and tell her that I am sorry." Ryan felt anger course through his body. He crossed the room and punched Zach hard in the stomach. The blow left Zach doubled over, tying to catch his breath. Ryan leaned down and said into Zach ear "Leave her alone." Then he turned and left the room.

Ryan said goodbye to Zach's mom and got into his car. He was pretty sure that the gates weren't going to open and he would be trapped, left to explain why he just threatened and then hit Zach. Ryan breathed a sigh of relief as the gates opened and he turned onto the road. He took some deep breaths to calm himself and headed for home. He was tempted to stop and check on Summer, but he didn't.

He gave Marissa a quick call though, and told her that he didn't expect any trouble from Zach. He asked how Summer was doing and Marissa told him that she had taken a pain killer and was sleeping. "She asked about you," Marissa told him. "Oh yea?" Ryan asked eagerly. "I think she was hoping that you would still be around when she got up." Ryan considered this information quietly. He told Marissa that they should call him if they needed him. Then he hung up the phone and drove home.

The rest of the day had been incredibly long. He had tried to sleep, tried to read, tried to watch tv, but nothing worked. He had told Seth that he wasn't up to going out tonight, and after some good natured ribbing, Seth had accepted his excuse. He had helped Sandy and Kirsten unload from their shopping trip, but he didn't hang out with them for very long. Kirsten had noticed right away that something was off with Ryan. Ryan felt terrible lying to them, so he had said he was sick and spent the rest of the evening in bed. Several times he had decided to go to Summer's. He even got into the car once, but he couldn't go. He wouldn't let himself go. Summer hadn't called, so she didn't need him. There was no reason for him to go.

Ryan turned off the light and hoped he could fall asleep. He hadn't been in bed very long when the phone rang. He saw that the number was Summer's and a little jolt of panic shot through him. "Hi, Ryan. It's … ah… Summer," she said when she picked up the phone. Ryan quickly asked her if everything was ok. "Yea, everything is ok. It's just that Marissa isn't here and … I probably shouldn't have called." Summer said, her voice becoming quieter.

XXXXXXXXXXX

So what do you guys think? Will Summer and Ryan hook up or will they just be friends? Will Zach get the ass kicking he so richly deserves? Will Seth and the Cohen's finally find out? Will I have an awesome time snowboarding and finally nail a backside 360?


	6. 6

I probably shouldn't have called." Summer said, her voice becoming quieter.

xxxxxx

"No, it's ok, I'm glad you did." Ryan said, sitting up now. "It's weird. Usually I don't mind being alone, I actually enjoy it," Summer paused "but I really don't want to be alone tonight." Summer held her breath and waited for a response. It had taken a lot of nerve for her to call Ryan and if he didn't want to come over she would be hurt. "I can come over if you want." Ryan offered. "I'll have to ride my bike, so it will take about 20 minutes for me to get there." Summer let out the breath she had been holding. "Thanks Ryan" she said before hanging up the phone.

Ryan quickly got dressed and headed outside to grab his trusty bike. There were still a few lights on in the main house, but Ryan had already said goodnight to the Cohen's and he didn't expect them to come out to the pool house again. Living in the pool house definitely had its advantages and no matter what anyone said, Ryan preferred living out here. He hadn't snuck out the house two nights in a row since he had been living with the Cohen's. Actually, he had never snuck out two nights in a row since his mom never really cared what he did.

The night air was crisp, but not cold as Ryan rode through the quiet streets. He was glad that Summer had called. He had spent all day not calling her, but wanting too. He wondered if his feelings for Summer were real or just a side-effect of the situation. Marissa was right, Ryan had a thing for saving people. It wasn't that he planned for it or searched these situations out; he just couldn't stand to see someone in trouble and not try to help.

Ryan was breathing hard as he pulled up to Summer's house. He realized that he had not been doing much riding lately. Now that he usually had a car, he was turning soft. The house appeared to be deserted from the outside. Ryan knew that Summer was probably holed up in her room, but he could see how being by yourself in such a large house could be disconcerting. As he walked up to the door, he saw a flash of light from one of the windows.

Summer let Ryan into the house. "Thanks, for coming. I feel kinda stupid for calling you. I mean I'm a big girl, I should be able to take care of myself." Summer stopped talking and looked up at Ryan. "You can take care of yourself, but sometimes its nice to not have too." Ryan said as he smiled at Summer "Trust me, I've learned that lesson over and over and over." Summer laughed for the first time in days, but the action caused pain in her ribs and Summer was soon bent over trying to catch her breath.

Ryan put his hand on her back and said "Try and breathe normally. Take a couple slow, shallow breaths." Summer did as Ryan suggested and soon her breathing was back to normal. "I guess I am not ready to laugh yet," Summer remarked dryly. Ryan became aware that his hand was still on Summer's back. He pulled it away quickly. "It's ok" Summer said sensing his discomfort. "I promise I won't like kick you for touching me, well … I'll try not to anyway." Summer was touched, but annoyed at the same time by Ryan's discomfort. She was touched that he respected her enough to be worried about her like that. She was annoyed because Ryan obviously thought of her as fragile.

"Have you been taking any painkillers?" He asked as he took off his jacket and threw it over a nearby chair. "Not since the one Marissa gave me this morning. I don't really want to be all messed up if I am the only one home" Summer replied. "Well now I am here, so you can take one. Are you sure you don't want to go to the doctor?" Ryan asked. He was still concerned about her ribs. He had had several broken ribs before and not gone to the doctor. He knew there wasn't much the doctors could do with broken ribs, but Ryan didn't want Summer to suffer anymore than she had too.

"I already told you I am not going." Summer said over her shoulder as she walked into the kitchen. Ryan followed behind her. "Ok" he said throwing his hands into the air, "I won't ask again. You are really stubborn, you know that?" Summer opened the fridge and pointed to Ryan. "Help yourself," she said pulling a bottle of water out of the fridge. "I know I'm stubborn," Summer began as she sat down one of the barstools. "Maybe that was one of the problems with Zach. He said he liked me cause I was different from him and his family, but maybe that was part of the problem."

Ryan leaned over the counter resting his arms on the marble surface until his face was level with Summer's. "You know that none of this is your fault. Zach is the one with the problem," Ryan said. Summer kept her head down, staring at the floor. "I know, I know " Summer said," but it doesn't really feel that way." Ryan knew exactly what Summer meant. He had felt the same way the first couple times he or his mother had been hit. It took him a long time and countless beatings to realize it wasn't his fault. Ryan didn't want Summer to learn the truth the same way he did.

There was so much that Ryan wanted to say to Summer, but he wasn't ready to talk yet. He felt like he had done a month's worth of talking in last couple of days. He looked over at Summer, sitting on the barstool, chewing on her bottom lip. He wanted to make her feel better, but he didn't know how. He reached across the counter and took hold of her hand. As Ryan held her hand, he stared intently into her eyes, hoping to convey with his eyes what he was unable to say.

Summer felt comforted by Ryan's actions. Sometimes words couldn't accurately reflect what needed to be said. "Well, "Summer said clearing her throat and breaking the silence, "I think I will go get a painkiller, otherwise I won't be able to sleep tonight." Summer got up and headed towards the stairs. Ryan walked over the fridge and grabbed a bottle of Heineken. He then followed Summer upstairs.

"Ryan!" Summer called as she dug through her step-monsters medicine cabinet. "I'm in here." Ryan followed the sound of her voice through a giant bedroom and into an equally giant bathroom. "I don't know which one I want to take tonight." Summer said as she stared at dozens of prescriptions. Ryan was impressed by the almost obscene amount of drugs in the cabinet. He grabbed several bottles and began reading their contents; Percocet, Xanax, Valium, Darvon, Somma, OxyContin. "Holy shit! You could make a fortune selling this stuff on the street" Ryan uttered aloud.

"Yea, and these are only pain killers and stuff. Most of the depression and anxiety stuff is in another cupboard." Summer informed him. "My mom wasn't really much of a pill popper." Ryan said. "She liked to drink and do almost everything else, but not prescription drugs". Summer paused and then said, "The sad part is my dad prescribes most of these for her and he doesn't realize she has a problem. He thinks that all problems can be solved by money or prescriptions." Ryan pulled out a bottle of Darvon and offered them to Summer. She took one and washed it down with a sip of Ryan's beer.

"I have some stuff on the Tivo I need to watch. Do you mind if we watch tv in my room until this painkiller kicks in and I pass out?" Summer asked while twirling a piece of hair around her finger. Ryan walked into her room and eyed the pink chair warily. He was still sore from sleeping in it last night. Summer caught his look and laughed cautiously. "You don't have to sit there, you can sit on my bed while we watch tv. Ryan sat stiffly on the bed. Summer laughed again, "You can lay back and make yourself comfortable, I already promised I wouldn't kick you."

Summer could tell that Ryan wasn't comfortable laying with her on her bed. She figured that he was uneasy laying so close to her. What Summer didn't know was if he wanted to be close to her or not. Summer studied him secretly out of the corner of her eyes. He really was cute, with his shaggy hair and muscles, plus he was being super nice to her. Not that Summer was in any position to be noticing these things about Ryan. It was going to take her a while to learn to trust guys again and when she did, Ryan couldn't be the one. She knew that, but it didn't stop her from asking him a question.

"Ryan, why are you here?" Summer suddenly asked him. Ryan looked at her curiously and said that he was here because she called him. "No, why did you really come. I know I called you, but why did you agree to come over?" Summer asked again, her voice more insistent. "I mean I know you are into saving people, but this is above and beyond what you normally do." Ryan was silent as he contemplated her question. He shifted on the bed so that he was directly in front Summer.

"I guess I am here because I want to be," Ryan said quietly. "I think I've learned more about you in these last couple days than in the entire last year. We are a lot more alike than you would think." Summer was surprised by this statement. She had never considered that she and Ryan had much in common. "Like what?" Summer asked urging him on.

"Well, we both know what it's like to have a parent leave when you are young. We both had to pretty much raise ourselves. Although at least I had my brother around, it seems like you spent most your time alone." Ryan could tell he hit a nerve with his last observation as it caused Summer to look away. "Both of us tend to be afraid of forming any attachments, probably because deep down we are afraid they will leave." Like Seth did, Summer thought.

"We are both tough and independent," Ryan continued. Summer stopped him and asked incredulously, "You think I am tough, even sitting here covered in bruises?" Ryan reached out and pushed a stray strand of hair off of Summer's face. "Of course. I mean, I know that you are in a lot of pain right now, but you don't show it." Summer shook her head and replied, "That doesn't make me tough. I used to be tough, but now …" Summer trailed off. "What happened doesn't change who you are," Ryan said. Tears were forming in Summer's eyes as she whispered, "I think it did."

Summer couldn't hold the tears back any longer and she broke out into loud sobs. She felt Ryan take her in his arms and hold her tightly. She heard him whispering that everything was going to be ok. She felt him rubbing her back. She cried for what felt like hours, until she was out of tears. Ryan didn't let Summer go when she finished crying. Instead he held her for several more minutes until Summer felt the storm of feelings subside. She pulled back from his slowly, feeling completely zapped of energy.

"You ok?" Ryan asked tenderly. Summer nodded and said, "Yea, but I am exhausted. I think I am ready to pass out." Ryan stood up and got off the bed. "Ryan, could you stay with me until I fall asleep?" Summer asked as she crawled beneath her covers. Ryan eyed the pink chair and hesitantly headed towards it. "Um .. . you could … probably just sleep on the bed. It's pretty big and it's kinda stupid for you to sleep in that horrible chair." Ryan walked back towards the bed. "Are you sure?" he asked. Summer nodded and Ryan laid down on the bed next to her.

Ryan spent most of the night trying not to move. He didn't want to accidentally hurt Summer and he tended to be a restless sleeper. Ryan had just decided to get up and sleep in the chair, when he finally fell asleep. Ryan woke up slowly; he felt oddly content. He was laying in a comfortable bed with his face being warmed by the sun. Through the haze of sleep Ryan was aware of someone moving next to him on the bed. He looked down and saw Summer looking up at him. She had snuggled up next to him during the night. Without thinking, Ryan bent down and kissed Summer. It took Ryan's mind several seconds to catch up with his body. When it did, he pulled back from the kiss and said, "Oh shit!"

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Well, I warned you this would probably end up Summer/Ryan. So if there is anyone left reading this, please leave a review. Thanks


	7. 7

It's a long chapter, so enjoy. It took a while to write cause the weather has been so nice and snowy, I've been really happy and it's hard to write angst when you are happy. Plus, all that nice snow lead to me going boarding and I am still seeing stars from the fall I took. I was trying to impress a guy with my skills, but instead I crashed, albeit spectacularly. Sigh

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Without thinking, Ryan bent down and kissed Summer. It took Ryan's mind several seconds to catch up with his body. When it did, he pulled back from the kiss and said, "Oh shit!"

Ryan jumped off the bed as if he had been bitten by a snake. "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry. That was … I mean … I didn't …" Ryan stopped. He couldn't think of a single thing to say other than sorry and sorry didn't really cut it. It wasn't that he didn't want to kiss her, the truth was he did want to, but he knew he shouldn't, plus the timing was bad. God, Ryan thought, she probably thinks I was trying to take advantage of her. Ryan finally looked at Summer, who had also jumped off the bed, and said again, "I'm sorry, I think I better go."

Summer didn't say anything. She watched Ryan struggle to apologize and rush to get out of her room. So much had happened lately and this was just another thing that Summer wasn't sure how to deal with. On Friday, she was happily dating Zach and now on Monday morning, she was waking up with injuries inflicted by Zach, and kissing Ryan. Summer wasn't upset about what had happened though. Waking up next to Ryan and kissing him hadn't felt wrong, it had actually felt right and strangely familiar.

Ryan walked out of Summer's room and headed down the stairs. He couldn't believe what he had just done. He and Summer had developed a close friendship in the last few days and he had just ruined everything with one sleepy kiss. Right now he just wanted to get out of there. Summer stood at the top of the stairs, her hands resting on the railing watching Ryan search for his coat so he could leave. Crap, Summer thought, now I have chased away the last guy on earth who I trust right now.

Ryan put on his coat and opened the front door. He turned one last time to say goodbye to Summer and he saw her watching him from the top of the stairs. Ryan stopped. For the first time since the kiss, his mind overpowered his flight instinct. As much as he wanted to leave, he knew he shouldn't leave things like this. He would have to be a man and talk to her. Ryan shut the door and headed up the stairs towards Summer. When he got to the top of the stairs he could see that Summer had tears in her eyes.

Ryan felt terrible. He didn't want to be the reason Summer was crying. He had only wanted to make her feel better and he had made everything worse. She looked so lost, standing in the hallway in her Paul Frank pajamas, with her arms crossed protectively in front of her. Ryan didn't know what to say, so he simply hugged her. Summer appeared to be a little more reassured to Ryan when he pulled away. "I'm sorry," Ryan said. "What happened doesn't have to change anything. We can figure everything out later. Ok?"

"Ok," Summer answered softly. She knew what she would be thinking about most of the day. "I do have to go, though. You're not going to school today, are you?" Ryan asked. "No, I am not going to go for a couple days. I don't want to go back ever, but that's not really an option." Summer sighed. She dreaded going back to school mainly because she knew she would see Zach. She was also going to have to make up a story about how she got her bruises. Right now she was leaning towards a car accident or maybe some crazy story about getting attacked at the mall by a girl gang for wearing the wrong color Hermes scarf or something.

Ryan gave her hand a quick squeeze, told her he would be back after school, and left. He wasn't looking forward to going to school today either. He would finally spend some time with Seth. Ryan had no idea how Seth would react to the news that Summer had been beaten by Zach. The thing that bothered him the most was that he was going to have to lie to Seth. Ryan hated lying, especially to Seth, but right now he was more worried about Summer than Seth, so he would lie.

The minute that Ryan and Seth set foot on the Harbor High campus, Marissa appeared in front of Ryan. "Hi guys," Marissa said sounding unusually cheerful. "Hi … Marissa," Seth said slowly, turning to look at Ryan with his eyebrow raised. "So Ryan, can we talk for a minute?" Marissa asked. Ryan nodded to Marissa then turned to Seth and said, "I'll catch up with you." Ryan and Marissa walked of to an unoccupied spot. "So have you heard?" She asked.

"Heard what?" Ryan asked warily. "There are all kinds of rumors about Zach and Summer." Marissa informed him. Ryan was worried, he knew that the gossip loving people of Newport would talk about Zach and Summer, but it was only 8:00 on Monday morning. He hadn't expected them to work this fast. "Well, it turns out Kate was at that party too and she saw Zach fighting with Summer over some guy Summer was dancing with. Summer isn't going to be here for a few days, and when she comes back with a black eye and avoiding Zach, people are going to talk."

"Well, let them talk I guess. We can't stop them. I told Zach not to say a word though, not like he would anyway." Ryan was annoyed, why couldn't people mind their own business. "Summer said you stayed with her last night," Marissa said. She wasn't sure, but she thought that maybe Summer liked Ryan, as more than just a friend. "Yea, well she didn't want to be alone." Ryan replied uncomfortably. He didn't know how much Summer had told Marissa and he had no idea how Marissa would react to the news that he had kissed Summer.

"I am heading over there after school, do you want a ride?" Marissa asked. Ryan decided that Summer hadn't told her about the kiss, and he was relieved. Ryan agreed to meet Marissa after school. When Ryan caught back up with Seth, Seth was curious. "Dude, you haven't talked to Marissa in weeks. What did she want?"

Great, Ryan thought, now the lying begins. "She just wants to get together after school and talk," said Ryan. "Oh right, and what exactly are you and Marissa going to talk about?" Ryan could tell that Seth was enjoying his discomfort. "I don't know," Ryan said as the bell rang. Before Seth could continue his interrogation, they were swept up in a crowd of students trying to get to class.

Summer was bored. Though still sore, she felt much better than the day before. She couldn't remember the last time she spent two whole days in her house without leaving. She wished she had some sort of videogame to play, because daytime tv sucked, and there was no way she was watching Dr. Phil. Since she didn't have anything to occupy her attention, her thoughts, of course, turned to Ryan. Deep down, Summer had to admit that she had enjoyed kissing Ryan. She had also enjoyed talking with him.

Ryan was right on with his psychoanalysis and that gave Summer even more to think about today. She didn't let people get to know her because if they really knew her they might really hurt her. Like her mother, and then Seth, and now Zach. So far, Summer didn't think she had done a very good job protecting herself, despite her efforts. The thing that scared her a bit about Ryan is that he now knew her better than almost anyone. Summer, who had been so cautious to allow Seth and Zach into her life, had let Ryan in in a matter of hours.

Ryan hadn't seen Summer alone since Sunday morning. Marissa had been with her after school and she had stayed with her Monday night. Tomorrow was Wednesday and Summer would be going back to school. Ryan really wanted to talk to Summer before they saw each other at school. They still had to talk about the kiss. So once again, Ryan was riding his bike in the dark on the way to Summer's house. He had gone over what he was going to say a million times in his head.

Summer was watching for Ryan and she opened the door as Ryan was getting off his bike. Summer lead Ryan into the living room and they sat next to each other on the loveseat. Neither said a word. "So you're going back to school tomorrow?" Ryan asked. Of course she is, you idiot, Ryan reproached himself. He was nervous and suddenly he couldn't remember the speech he had rehearsed so many times. He knew that it had something to do with reasons why they couldn't be together, but now that he was with Summer the reasons didn't seem as important as they had earlier.

"I … um," Ryan stopped and cleared his throat. He had hoped it wouldn't be awkward, but it was. Summer waited for Ryan to continue. She had decided that she would let him speak first. "So, I like you Summer. I like how I feel when I am with you and I liked kissing you." There, he had said it out loud. "But," Ryan continued hesitantly "I guess we should just be friends. I mean, you're probably going to want some time to … recover and between Seth and Marissa, I just don't know how we could …" Ryan stopped.

He was afraid to look at Summer. He didn't know if he would see relief in her face, or maybe disappointment. When he finally did look up, he saw a mixture of both. Summer was conflicted. One minute she never wanted another boyfriend again and another minute she wanted to be with Ryan. Life was suddenly so complicated. He had said he liked her though! She smiled at Ryan and said, "I like you too Ryan. I don't know what this is between us, but I know I want to spend time with you." Now it was Ryan's turn to smile.

When Summer woke up the next morning she was nervous. She couldn't remember the last time she was nervous about going to school. Marissa had told her yesterday about the rumors. She didn't even remember seeing Kate at the party. Stupid Kate. She had loaned Kate a tampon once, but never again! Summer knew intimately the inner workings of the Harbor gossip scene. Everyone in school will have heard about her and who knows what they will have heard. Gossip always reminded Summer of the game telephone, since the story morphed as it was being told and retold. So there is probably some freshman out there who totally believes that Zach took down like 5 cops and had to be tranquilized and that Summer was so traumatized by the situation that she had fled to a monastery in Nepal. It was going to be a long day.

She took her time getting ready for school. She had put a lot of thought into what she was going to wear today. She knew everyone in school would be looking at her and she wanted to make sure they saw the Summer they knew, happy and confident, and not the Summer she had become, scared and unsure. She had also given a lot of thought to what she would do when she saw Zach and after all the planning she had decided to ignore him. Brilliant. She would also ignore all the people at school. She wasn't going to make up some story to tell them; she wasn't going to tell them anything.

Summer was able to cover up most of the discoloration from the bruises, but there was nothing she could do about the swelling. She sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. There would probably be a rumor that she had gotten a nose job. Hmm, that would be a good story. Summer mulled over her story options as she waited for Marissa to pick her up. Summer wasn't going to say anything to people she didn't know, but she would have to have something to say to her friends and teachers.

As Summer sat in her first period class, she fought the urge to get up and run home. So far the day had been worse than she had imagined and all she had done was walk from the parking lot to class. Everyone pointed and whispered as she walked by. Though Summer didn't really care what they thought about her, it was still uncomfortable.

When the bell rang signaling it was lunch time, Summer felt her dread return. She would finally have to talk to Seth and she would probably see Zach. When Summer walked out of her classroom she wasn't surprised to see Ryan leaning up against a locker, waiting for her. Either Ryan or Marissa had escorted Summer to and from each of her classes so far. She had tried to tell them they didn't have to do that, but she was secretly relieved when neither of them listened to her.

"Hey!" Ryan greeted her as she walked out of the classroom. "So are you ready for this?" Ryan asked as they headed down the hallway. Truthfully no. Summer would have preferred to leave campus and have a quiet lunch with Ryan, but she knew that soon or later she would have to face lunch at school. Marissa was already sitting at a table in the corner with Seth when Summer and Ryan arrived.

Seth jumped up as soon as he saw Summer. He had heard all sorts of terrible rumors about what had happened to her. Marissa had told him that Summer had been in a car accident, but Seth wasn't sure he believed her. He had overheard Kate telling a group of people that Zach and Summer had a big fight at some fundraiser. Finally, yesterday he had asked Zach where Summer was. Zach had told Seth that they had broken up and that he hadn't talked to her since Saturday. When Seth had pressed him for more details, Zach ended the conversation quickly.

Seth carefully studied Summer. He could see the bruises that she was trying to hide. He could also tell that she was scared. "Hi," Seth said quietly. "How are you feeling?" Summer smiled at Seth and told him she was feeling much better. "So … um car wreck, huh?" Seth asked as they sat down. "Yea" Summer answered uncomfortably. "It was just a little fender bender, but the airbag didn't go off, so …" She stopped herself. Summer knew that when lying, it was best to keep the story simple. Don't give too many details.

"I tried to call you," Seth said "there are all these crazy rumors and I just wanted to make sure you were ok." Summer shifted in her seat and shot a "rescue me" look to Marissa. "I'm fine, really." Summer said trying to keep her tone light. Ryan finally rescued her when he said, "Come on Seth, lets go get some lunch." Seth looked back at Summer. He wanted to finish this conversation, but he got up and followed Ryan over to the line.

"Do you think she was really in a car wreck?" Seth asked after he placed his order for sushi. Ryan winced. He should have taken Summer out to lunch somewhere and avoided this whole mess. "Yes, that's what she said," Ryan replied. "I don't think I believe that man. She's acting weird, why would she be acting weird if she just had a fender bender? Zach is acting weird too and so is Marissa." Ryan was relieved when Seth didn't add his name to the list. "Something is going on here and I am going to find out what it is" Seth vowed.

Seth pondered the situation as he sat in English waiting for the final bell. It was the last class of the day and a class that Summer was also in. He had hoped to talk to her, but she walked in late so he didn't get a chance. Seth had hoped to catch her after class, but she had gone to the bathroom and hadn't returned yet. Seth gathered up his stuff and headed out into the hall, trying to keep an eye out for Summer, which was virtually impossible in the packed hallways.

Seth saw Ryan as he walked out of the room. "Hey," Seth said, surprised to see Ryan waiting for him. "Did you decide to walk me to the car?" Usually Seth and Ryan met after school in the parking lot. "Well, we got out a few minutes early so… " Ryan was sneakily trying to see if Summer had come out of the room. "Well, lets go then," Seth said as he started up the hall way. Seth paused when he realized that Ryan wasn't following him. Ryan was looking into the empty classroom.

"So was Summer in class today?" Ryan asked, a little fear creeping into his voice. "Yea, but she left to go to the bathroom and never came back. Why?" Seth could tell that Ryan was worried. "Shit!" Ryan swore as he looked around wildly. "I gotta go," he said and he started up the hall. "Wait," Seth called. "What the hell is going on?" Seth was worried now. Ryan didn't say anything as he walked quickly down the hall. Seth ran to catch up with him, calling his name, but Ryan didn't turn around. Seth finally caught up to him. He grabbed Ryan and threw him up against a locker. Ryan struggled against him, but Seth didn't let go. "Ryan, tell me what the fuck is going on."

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So please leave me some reviews, they don't have to be witty or anything. I have to work on a project all day tomorrow with a coworker who … well, let's just say, sucks. So some reviews would help ease the pain.

Hehe. I always hated when tv shows would do the whole will they or won't they hook up plot and now I am doing it.


	8. 8

Thanks for the reviews, as always they are aspirational!

I learned everything I know about medical stuff from Scrubs and ER and my legal knowledge comes from Ally McBeal so…….

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Ryan finally broke free from Seth. Both boys stood staring at each other, their chests heaving from their efforts. "We need to find Summer. She might be in trouble," Ryan said. "Zach?" Seth asked, already knowing the answer. Ryan nodded his head. Seth had a million questions, including why Ryan knew about this, but he realized this was not the time to ask them. "I'll go this way," Seth said pointing down the hall," and you go that way. We'll meet out front. They each turned and ran down the hallway.

They met up again at the front of the school. "Did you find her?" Ryan asked. "No," Seth answered, panting from his short run. Ryan looked around, but it was hard to see through the crowd of students laughing and talking. "Lets try over here," Ryan said pointing to the outdoor terrace where they ate lunch. As they reached the terrace, they heard a girl exclaim to her friends, "Oh my God, look!" Ryan and Seth followed her pointing finger and saw two people fighting on the grassy hill beneath the terrace.

Seth and Ryan took off at full speed, jumping the low wall and running down toward Summer and Zach. As they were running, they saw Zach hit Summer in the face and Summer crumple awkwardly to the ground. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion for Ryan. He saw Summer go down, he heard screams from the students watching on the terrace, and he heard himself yell as he launched himself at Zach.

Seth stopped in shock when he saw Zach hit Summer. He stood still for a second trying to absorb the scene; he couldn't quite believe what he had just seen. When Seth saw Ryan tackle Zach and begin punching him, it pulled Seth out of his daze. He ran to Summer. Her face was bleeding and she was crying and grabbing her ankle. "Oh God Summer, are you ok?" Seth asked as he knelt down beside her. Summer shook her head. "I think my ankle is broken and … maybe my nose," she said weakly. Seth turned and called out "somebody call 911!"

The next few minutes were complete chaos. Several security guards and teachers were right behind Seth and Ryan. They guards pulled Ryan off of Zach. Ryan had only gotten several good punches in and it took both guards to restrain him as he tried to get to Zach. "You fucker, I'm going to kill you!" Ryan was screaming. Ryan wanted to run to Summer to see if she was ok, but the security guards wouldn't let him go. They kept telling him he had to calm down first. "How the hell am I supposed to calm down?" Ryan asked. Ryan was trying to calm down, but every time he looked at Zach his anger overpowered him.

Seth was barely conscious of the drama around him. All of his attention was focused on Summer. He could tell that she was in terrible pain, but he couldn't do anything about it. Seth kept hold of Summer's hand, even when the school nurse arrived, Seth wouldn't let go. I took about 10 minutes for the police and EMT's to arrive, but it felt like an eternity to everyone involved.

The EMT's made Seth step away from Summer. For the first time, he looked around and took notice of what was happening. He saw Ryan talking to several policemen, animatedly trying to convince them that he was not the one who hurt Summer. Zach was being attended to by paramedics. Seth could see that Ryan had bloodied his face and Seth was glad, although he would have liked to have been the one to do it.

It didn't take the paramedics long to get Summer strapped to a backboard. They couldn't pull the ambulance up very close, so they had to carry Summer up the hill to where it was parked. Seth knew he should check on Ryan, but he didn't want to leave Summer. As they got to the ambulance, Seth became aware that what seemed to be the entire school was watching. He heard a scream from back in the crowd and Marissa came running up. "Oh Summer," Marissa said with a hint of hysteria in her voice. "I waited for you after school and when you didn't come…" Marissa was interrupted by a paramedic ordering her to stay back.

Seth explained that Marissa was Summer's best friend and the paramedic seemed to soften a bit. The medic said, "Well, only one of you can ride with us." He adjusted the gurney so that it could be placed in the back of the ambulance. Marissa was already crawling in, so Seth grabbed Summer's hand and told her he would see her at the hospital. In a faint voice Summer said, "Please tell me I am dreaming." Before Seth could answer, she was loaded in the ambulance. He stood frozen for a moment. None of the students in the crowd made a sound. Seth wished that it was a dream.

Ryan was unable to convince the police that he was not the one who had attacked Summer. They thought he had been on some sort of rampage and attacked Summer and Zach out of jealousy. They had just put Ryan in handcuffs when the sergeant walked up with the two security guards in tow. "Let him go," he said gruffly, "he was just trying to protect her. I want you two to stay with him." He said pointing to Zach. "Once he is done with the medics, bring him in."

"How is she?" Ryan asked, more concerned for Summer than for himself. "I don't know, they are taking her to the hospital. I'll take you over and we can talk on the way." He felt sorry for the kid. It was obvious that he had strong feelings for the girl who was attacked and he had been trying to protect her. It was too bad that the Johnson and Wise were the first on the scene. Both were young and overzealous and had been about to handcuff this poor kid and take him in.

Seth started to look around for Ryan and he saw him being put into a cop car. "Wait!" Seth yelled as he ran toward the car, "don't arrest him, he didn't do anything wrong." The office smiled at Seth. "He isn't being arrested, if he was he would be in the back of the car. I'm giving him a ride to the hospital." Seth was relieved. He didn't think he could deal if Ryan was arrested. "Can I come?" Seth asked. Sergeant Brooks shook his head. "No, we have some things to discuss on the way." Ryan pulled the keys to the Range Rover out of his pocket and tossed them to Seth. "I'll see you at the hospital, drive carefully."

Seth reached the hospital right after Ryan did. He ran into the emergency room and saw Ryan, Marissa, and Sergeant Brooks talking quietly. "How is she?" Seth asked breathlessly. "They think her ankle is broken and her nose might be too, but she is going to be ok. The medics said she was lucky she didn't have any head trauma." Marissa replied. Sergeant Brooks said that he had to leave, but that someone would be here to take their statements. "What's going to happened to Zach?" Marissa asked as he walked away. "You won't have to worry about him for a while," the sergeant replied. He walked out of the hospital, leaving Seth, Marissa and Ryan alone.

"So what do we do now?" Seth asked. "We wait I guess," Marissa replied." The nurse said that the doctor would come talk to me when they are done." Seth shook his head, "I can't believe this is happening," he said. He was still in a state of shock. Marissa lead them over to the waiting room. "Ok," Seth said, "tell me everything." Marissa took a deep breath and told Seth the about the party last weekend. "I can't believe you didn't tell me! Why would you keep something like this from me?" Seth said to Ryan. Ryan said nothing, but Marissa jumped to his defense. "Summer didn't want anyone to know."

"So why did Ryan know?" Seth was hurt. Why had Summer told Ryan and not him? "Well, it was really me that told him. I didn't give Summer a choice." Marissa said defensively. Seth ran his hands through his hair, causing it to stick out in all different directions. "You should have told me, man." Seth said to Ryan.

Ryan didn't respond. He hadn't said a word since he had arrived at the hospital. Ryan knew that this entire situation was his fault; he should have done more to protect Summer. He knew better. Suddenly Ryan felt sick. He couldn't breath. "I'll be right back," he said to Seth and Marissa as he ran out the front doors. He ran outside to the parking lot and leaned up against the wall. "This is all my fault," he muttered over and over. Then he bent over and threw up.

Ryan went to the bathroom and splashed some water on his face. He knew he had to get a grip on himself, but when he thought about how he had felt when he saw Zach hurt her, he began to feel sick again. Ryan stared at himself in the mirror as he splashed water on his face. The afternoon's events had given him a revelation; he was in love with Summer. Ryan had been terrified when he couldn't find her after class, and when he had seen Zach hurt her, he knew. Sometime in the last week he had fallen in love with her. He hadn't meant to, but it had happened anyway. Consciously realizing this didn't make life any easier. Now he had to feel guilty about that too.

When Ryan got back to the chairs they had been waiting in, Seth and Marissa were gone. Ryan panicked for a moment. Had something happened to Summer? A passing nurse saw the panicked look on Ryan's and told him her friends were down the hall talking to the doctor. They doctor had just walked away when Ryan got there. "Are you ok Ryan?" Marissa asked. "You look really pale."

"Yea, I'm fine, what did the doctor have to say?" Ryan asked. "They are taking her up to do x-rays. Her ankle is broken and maybe her nose. He said she was lucky though…" Marissa trailed off. It didn't seem very lucky to any of them that Summer was lying in a hospital bed. "We need to get a hold of her dad, but I have no idea how to do that. The doctor was worried because Summer couldn't remember where he dad was, but I told him that was normal. He travels so much it's easy to lose track." Marissa said. "I think we should call my parents," Seth said quietly

Marissa agreed. They were in way over their heads here and it was time to get some parents on the scene. Since hers were sailing and crazy, and Ryan's were crazy and in jail, that left the Cohen's. Marissa and Ryan could hear snippets of Seth's conversation with his mother as they sat in the molded plastic chairs. "We should have told somebody about this," Marissa said as she looked down at her hands.

"I know," Ryan replied quietly. He had thought that he could handle the situation, but obviously he couldn't. He should have gone to the Cohen's. How many times was it going to take for him to learn to ask for help? He had wanted to call the police; he had wanted to do something, but Summer didn't want him to. He should have done it anyway. He probably shouldn't have hit Zach, or maybe he should have hit him more so he wouldn't be physically able to hurt Summer. Ryan knew that this was all his fault. The first attack had been Zach's fault, but this one was Ryan's. He wondered what Sandy and Kirsten would have to say about this.

Kirsten made it to the hospital quickly. When she got inside, she found Ryan and Marissa sitting in the hallway. Marissa had her arm around Ryan, and Seth was pacing up and down the hallway. Kirsten had been stunned when she received Seth's call. Once she had gotten past the initial selfish relief that was not one of her children who was hurt, she jumped into action. Kirsten hurriedly left the meeting she was in and stopped by her office to get Neal's latest contact info.

Kirsten was worried about Summer. She had had a soft spot for Summer ever since the day Summer's mother wound up on Kirsten's doorstep. Kirsten had known that Summer's mother was desperately unhappy; it was not a big secret in Newport. What did surprise Kirsten was that Cynthia came to see her before she left. She had cried and told Kirsten that Summer would be better off without her. She had also asked Kirsten to keep an eye on Summer. Kirsten had not understood how a mother would leave her child, but she had seen it again with Ryan's mother.

Kirsten had tried to help, but Neal was a proud and private man and refused Kirsten's attempts. Kirsten could tell that Summer was having trouble adjusting to her mother being gone. It didn't help that Neal refused to talk about her. It was like Summer's mother had simply disappeared one day and the child was not allowed to talk about her.

She had been relieved when Summer had become good friends with Marissa. Julie Cooper may not be the ideal mother, but she was better than nothing. The only thing Neal had allowed Kirsten to do was to be Summer's emergency contact in case something happened while he was traveling. He would faithfully send Kirsten an email every time he was out of the country for an extended period. There was no polite chat, no inquiries about Kirsten's health or family, just an email saying that he when he would be gone and where he could be reached.

"Mom!" Seth said as he ran to his mother and hugged her. "They think her ankle is broken, but we haven't seen the doctor for a while and he keeps telling up she was lucky, but I don't think she was lucky and then …." Kirsten interrupted Seth and said, "Ok sweetie, I am going to go find out what is going on. Then I will call Neal." Kirsten looked at Marissa and Ryan, "Are you guys ok?" Marissa nodded her head and said," Yea, I guess." Ryan lifted his eyes to meet Kirsten's, but he said nothing. He looked so sad.

Several minutes later, Kirsten returned with the news that Summer was out of x-ray and had been taken to a different room. "They need to set her ankle, but the doctor said you could see her for a few minutes first." When they got to her room Ryan hesitated. He didn't think he could do it. He didn't think he go in there and see Summer hurt again, especially when he could have prevented it. He didn't think he could go in there and not tell her he loved her. "I'll wait out here," he stammered. Marissa was surprised; she knew that Ryan and Summer had become close.

Ryan watched through the window as they entered Summer's room. He watched as Kirsten talked soothingly to Summer. He watched as Marissa sat holding Summer's hand and tried not to cry. He watched as Seth paced around, running his fingers through his hair, unsure of how to act and what to say. When they came out of the room Kirsten said, "Ryan, Summer would like to see you. She's a little out of it, but the nurse says that it's from the drugs" Ryan nodded. He took a deep breath and walked into the room.

Ryan hated hospitals. He hated everything about them, especially the antiseptic smell and the harsh whiteness of the lights and the walls. Summer looked so small in the hospital bed. Her face actually didn't look as bad as last time, but seeing her in hospital and not at her house made it seem much worse. "Hey," Ryan said gently as he walked up to the bed. "Hey," Summer replied, the pain killers were kicking in and she was getting sleepy, but she wanted to see Ryan first and thank him. "For what?" Ryan asked. "I didn't stop him from putting you in the hospital."

"No, but you tried." Ryan wanted to respond that that wasn't good enough, but he didn't. Ryan sat down and took Summer's hand. "I love you Summer, and I'll be here when you wake up." Summer smiled. The nurse walked in. "It's time to go upstairs honey, and get your ankle set," the nurse said. She then turned to Ryan and said, "she will be back in about and hour." Ryan leaned down, kissed her gently on the lips, and left the room.

When Ryan walked into the hallway, both Kirsten and Marissa were on the phone. Seth was standing still, staring at Ryan. Ryan realized that he had been watching through the window. Ryan quickly excused himself, saying he had to get some air, but he was really going to have a cigarette. He needed something to steady his nerves and he had watched the receptionist come back in from her break with a pack of cigarettes in her hand. Ryan bummed one from her and walked outside. He had just taken his first drag when he heard the door open behind him. Seth walked up to Ryan and asked, "Are you in love with Summer?"

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Ok guys, has there ever been something on the show about summer's dad always being gone or is that a handy convention of fanfic?


	9. 9

Sorry this took so long to post, but I had the flu. Man, the flu sucks. I vow to do what ever I have to do next year to get a flu shot. Even if I have to dress up like Bea Arthur and push old ladies out of my way.

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Ryan's mouth dropped open in surprise and his cigarette fell out. "Ow!" He cried as the cigarette landed on his arm and burned a hole in his shirt. Ryan slowly bent over and picked the cigarette up off the cement. How the hell had Seth figured it out so quickly? Ryan himself had just figured it out and he wasn't even sure if Summer knew, since he had told he when she was under the influence of heavy painkillers. He was not ready to have this conversation with Seth. "I … um … what?" Ryan staggered, his brain not quite quick enough.

"You know what Ryan," Seth said his voice low. "Answer me."

Ryan didn't know what to say. He didn't want to hurt Seth, but he didn't want to lie to him. Ryan had had enough with lying. "So that's where you have been sneaking off to lately huh," Seth said, unable to stay quiet any longer. Ryan looked up, surprised. He didn't think anyone had noticed his late night absences. "I knew you were staying out all night man, but I didn't say anything. I covered for you so that you could … what play knight in shinning armor to Summer?" Ryan opened his mouth to say something, but Seth was on a roll and kept right on talking.

"That's how you get your women, huh? You save them and then they fall in love with you. First Marissa and now Summer. How fucking convenient." Seth was starting to yell. "Seth, that's not fair," Ryan said quietly. Seth snorted, "You know what not fair Ryan? It's not fair that you, my brother, who is supposed to have my back is getting together with my ex girlfriend and not just any ex girlfriend, but my first love." Seth stopped to catch his breath and Ryan took the opportunity to finally speak .

"Look Seth, I don't really know what is going on." Ryan said as he took the last drag of the cigarette and flicked it away. "This last week has been crazy. Everything has happened so fast and I don't really know how I feel about Summer. All I know is that I care about her and when I saw Zach hurting her today…" Ryan stopped and turned away from Seth. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes. He blinked the tears back; he couldn't cry. The last thing Ryan had wanted was for Seth and Summer to be hurt. He could have prevented it, all of it, but he hadn't.

"It wasn't hard to figure out," Seth continued. "I mean with the way you attacked Zach and the way you acted here at the hospital. You kissed her right in front of me dude. You didn't even try to hide it and now you are telling me …" Seth was interrupted by Kirsten who cleared her voice and said, "Boys." The sound of her voice startled them both. They had been so intent on their conversation that neither of them had heard Kirsten walk up behind them.

"The police have some more questions and Sandy should be here any minute," Kirsten said while wringing her hands. She had heard enough of their conversation to know what they were talking about. Ryan turned back toward them, stealthily trying to brush a tear from his cheek, but both Seth and his mother saw his action. Kirsten put her arm around Seth and said, "Honey, why don't you go inside and wait for you father. We will be right in." Seth started to protest, but Kirsten put her arm on his back and gently guided him toward the door.

Ryan took one look at Kirsten's concerned and sympathetic face and he couldn't hold back his tears any longer. Kirsten held him as he cried. After a minute, Ryan pulled away from Kirsten. "I'm sorry," he said. That was all he seemed to say anymore. "I should probably go in." Kirsten stepped in front of Ryan, blocking his path to the door. "I think I know what you and Seth were talking about," Kirsten said gently. "You … have feelings for Summer." Ryan nodded. "I know I shouldn't, but I can't help it and now Seth … I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't know what to do."

Ryan looked up at Kirsten, his eyes red from crying, the anguish obvious on his face. Kirsten paused for a moment. She wanted to choose her words carefully. It wasn't very often that Ryan talked about his feelings and this was a tricky situation. "Ryan you can't always choose who you care about. Summer needed you and you were there for her. I think she is going to need you now more than ever and you should be there for her."

"But Seth," Ryan interrupted. Kirsten took a deep breath and said, "Ryan, I don't know what will happen in the future." Kirsten reached forward and smoothed down a stray piece of Ryan's hair. "Seth is upset. He doesn't know how to deal with any of this. If you and Summer decide to see each other then you and Summer and Seth will have to figure it out. Right now, the most important thing is to help Summer recover, and that's what we should be focusing on. Ok?" Ryan sighed and said, "Ok". He was relieved that Kirsten didn't seem to blame him. "We will have to talk about the sneaking out, though."

"Right," Ryan said, smiling for the first time in hours. He pulled the door open for Kirsten and winced as pain shot through his right hand. Kirsten saw him flinch and asked, "Did you do something to your hand?" Ryan looked down and his hand and flexed it several times. "It's probably just a little bruise." He really didn't want Kirsten to know the details of his fight with Zach. Kirsten was just about to ask Ryan why his hand would be bruised when she remembered that Ryan had stopped Zach's attack on Summer.

"Is that the hand you hit Zach with?" Kirsten asked. "Yea," Ryan replied uncomfortably. He wasn't ashamed of beating up Zach, but he didn't want Kirsten to know what kind of violence he was capable of. Kirsten sensed his discomfort and didn't ask anymore questions. "We will ask the doctor to look at it," she said in a tone that Ryan knew not to argue with.

When they got back to the waiting room, Sandy was speaking animatedly with a police officer while Seth and Marissa sat waiting in chairs. "You don't need to get a statement from her tonight. You have hundreds of witnesses who saw exactly what happened and you know good and well that you don't have to have her statement to charge him." The young officer backed away from Sandy, "My … my boss told me to come down here and get her statement."

"Well, go tell your boss you will get it tomorrow." Sandy turned away from the overmatched rookie and hurried towards Kirsten and Ryan. "Hey kid, how are you holding up?" Sandy asked Ryan as he put his hand on Ryan's shoulder. "I'm alright, what was that all about?" Ryan asked as he pointed towards the retreating officer. "Oh, its nothing. Did you already give a statement?" Sandy asked. "Not really, I talked with Sergeant Brooks. I told him that my … that I lived with a lawyer and he told me not to worry. Everyone saw that I was acting in defense of Summer."

Just then Kirsten walked up with a doctor. "Ryan, this is Doctor Richards and he is going to look at your hand." Ryan started to protest that his hand was just fine, but Kirsten wouldn't hear it. Finally Ryan gave up and followed the doctor down the hall. Sandy and Kirsten were talking quietly down the hall, leaving Seth and Marissa alone in the hard plastic chairs.

"Did you know?" Seth asked. Marissa looked at him quizzically. "Yea, I thought you knew that both Ryan and I had been taking care of Summer for the last week." Seth shook his head, "No, did you know about Ryan and Summer? That Ryan is like in love with her or something." Marissa looked down at her hands, intently examining her nails. After a minute she said, "I kinda thought so. The last week things have been really intense between Summer and Ryan and he was so worried about her…" Marissa trailed off. She was obviously not very comfortable talking about this.

"Doesn't it bother you?" Seth continued. "I mean you and Ryan were dating and in love just a couple months ago and now he has moved on to your best friend."

Marissa sighed. "At first it did, but I mean things with Ryan have been over for a while. We had our shot. So much has happened since then it would be hard for us to go back." Marissa stopped and thought for a minute. "I know what you mean though. If it was different, like if they had just hooked up at a party one night or something …."

Seth stood up and began pacing the hallway again. "I can't believe he would do this to me." Marissa stood up and grabbed Seth's arm. "This is not about you Seth. Summer is the one in the hospital. She is the one who had the shit kicked out of her by her boyfriend in front of the entire school. If you really cared about Summer, you would be glad that Ryan can help her. He knows about this stuff since he has been through it before. You and I never have. Summer feels better when she is with him and so that's that."

Seth stopped pacing and focused his attention instead on them a stray thread on the hem of his shirt. He knew that what Marissa said made sense. He knew that he should try to be adult about this, but it was hard. When it came to Summer, he had always had trouble thinking rationally. Marissa came up behind Seth and put her arm around him. "I know this is hard for you, it's hard for all of us. Summer is going to need you Seth, she is going to need all of her friends." Just then Summer's doctor approached Sandy and Kirsten. Seth and Marissa looked at each other. "Thanks," Seth said as they headed towards the doctor.

"The break in her ankle was just a simple fracture. There is no need for to surgically repair it so we just set it and put a cast on it. She is going to have to keep weigh off of the ankle for at least six weeks. Her nose is broken, but it is a non-displaced fracture, so it won't require surgery either. It will hurt and be swollen for several weeks, but eventually it will return to normal. The x rays did show several cracked ribs, but they looked to be several days old. There is not much we can do for the ribs. If they are causing her pain, you might try wrapping them with an ACE bandage. Otherwise she will just have to take it easy for a few weeks. Overall, I would say that she was lucky."

Everyone winced when the doctor used the word lucky again to describe Summer's situation. "When will she be able to go home?" Kirsten asked. "I am not going to admit her, so she can go home as soon as they are done with the stitches," the doctor replied. "Why does she need stitches?" Seth asked. "She has a small cut above her eye that will require maybe six stitches. Luckily John was on call. He is very good with stitches and Neal would never let us hear the end of it if we left a scar." The doctor looked down at his pager. "I need to go, do you have anymore questions?" Sandy and Kirsten shook their heads. "Ok then," the doctor said as he shook Kirsten and Sandy's hands. "The nurses will be able to give you the rest of the information."

Everyone stood quietly for a minute absorbing what the doctor had said. "Did you get a hold of her dad?" Seth asked. Kirsten nodded. "Yes, he was upset, of course, and is working on getting a flight home. Summer will be staying with us tonight until Neal gets back. Marissa have you told you mother where you are?" Marissa opened her mouth to reply, but she saw Ryan walking down the hall towards them. Kirsten hurried down the hallway to meet him.

"How is your hand?" she asked with evident concern. Ryan shrugged, "I guess there are a couple little bones broken, but there's not much they can do. The nurse just wrapped it up and told me not to punch anyone for at least a month." That got a smile from everyone. Kirsten announced, "I am going to see about the paperwork so that we can get Summer out of here."

Seth pulled Ryan over to the side. "I guess that means I won't get hit for that stuff I said earlier." Ryan looked down at his bandaged hand. "Well, I could probably use some practice on my left hook." Seth took a step back and Ryan laughed. "I'm kidding Seth." Ryan cleared his throat and said, "You were right though, about what you said. I shouldn't have … " Seth interrupted Ryan. "No, I wasn't right. I shouldn't have said what I did about you and saving people. We can figure everything out later, right now we just have to help Summer." Seth threw an arm around Ryan and said, "We've got to stick together, remember?" Ryan nodded. Seth felt better, but he couldn't believe that he had actually listened to and followed Marissa's advice. Since when had she become the voice of reason?

"Ok guys, we are all ready to go," Kirsten announced as she walked up to the group. She saw Seth with his arm around Ryan and felt relieved. She didn't think she could handle a fight between the boys right now. "Sandy, will you go get the car?" She asked handing him the keys and he headed off down the hallway. Everyone fell silent as a nurse wheeled a bruised and bandaged Summer out of her hospital room. "Hi sweetie," Kirsten said as she rushed Summer's side. "We are going to take you home with us until you dad gets here, Ok?"

Summer quietly said, "Ok." The nurse started to wheel her down the hallway. "She will be a little out of it this evening until the morphine wears off. She needs lots of rest and quiet." The nurse said sternly eyeing Seth, Ryan, and Marissa. The nurse helped Sandy load Summer into the back of the BMW. "Ok boys, you guys bring the Rover home," Sandy said. Kirsten turned to Marissa and said, "You are more than welcome to come over, but I think Summer will probably sleep all night."

"I had better get home, I am still in trouble for sneaking out and I need to explain all this to my mom before she ships me off to military school or something. Marissa bent down and gave Summer a quick hug. "I love you Sum, and I'll see you tomorrow."

Kirsten and Sandy got Summer home and into the guest bed with no problems. Sandy, Seth, and Ryan sat around the table absent mindedly munching on bagels, while Kirsten settled Summer in. Sandy knew that he should say something to the boys, but honestly right now he just couldn't come up with an "everything is going to be ok speech." Sandy was actually feeling lucky that he didn't have a daughter. He couldn't image what it would be like to have a daughter and find out that she was being abused by her boyfriend.

Kirsten walked into the kitchen and announced that Summer was almost asleep. "I forgot to get her prescription for painkillers filled today," she said. "Why don't you call it in now and I can go first thing in the morning and get it," Sandy offered. Kirsten nodded gratefully. She felt exhausted and she hadn't really done anything. I must be emotionally exhausted, she thought. Ryan cleared his voice and asked quietly, "Can I go see her?" He looked at Seth after he spoke, but Seth didn't look at him.

"Sure honey, take her up this glass of water," Kirsten replied. Ryan stood outside the door with the glass of water in his hand. He wasn't sure what he was going to do, but he wanted to be close to Summer. She was already drifting off to sleep when Ryan opened the door. He walked over to the bed and sat down on it. "Hey," he said. Summer's eyes opened at the sound of his voice. "Oh Ryan," she said sleepily. "You need to get some rest, I just wanted to come see you first," he said as he stroked her forehead. "Will you stay?" She asked. "Sure," Ryan said and he carefully laid down on the best next to Summer.

When Kirsten went up to check on Ryan, she found him asleep on the bed next to Summer. She knew that she should probably wake him up and make him sleep in his own bed, but she didn't. Summer would feel better if she woke up in a strange bed if Ryan was next to her. Kirsten quietly shut the door and went downstairs.

Kirsten had just barely got out of bed and gotten a cup of coffee when the doorbell rang. She knew that Sandy had run to the pharmacy, so she went to answer the door. "Where is she?" Neal demanded. "Hi," Kirsten stuttered as Neal pushed by her and into the house. "Summer is still sleeping and Sandy should be back any minute with her prescription, why don't you sit down and we can talk." Kirsten said stifling back a yawn.

"No, I want to see my daughter now," Neal demanded. Kirsten was slowly waking up and she remembered that Ryan was sleeping in the same bed as Summer. "Why don't you wait here and I will go wake her up." Kirsten wasn't sure how Neal would react if he walked in and say Ryan sleeping next to Summer; she didn't even think he knew Ryan. "Kirsten," Neal said forcefully, "Thank you for what you have done, but I am here to take my daughter home." He started up the stairs with Kirsten right behind him.

Neal opened the door of the guest bedroom and was startled to see his injured daughter sleeping under the covers with a boy he didn't even know. "What the hell is going on here?" He asked as he pulled Ryan out of the bed. "Who the hell are you?" Ryan was too surprised to answer. Kirsten stepped in front of him and said "this is Ryan, my son." Neal turned his attention to Summer. "Hi daddy," she said softly. Neal walked over to her and picked her up. "Hi baby, I am taking you home now."

Neal carried Summer down the stairs, with Kirsten and Ryan following close behind. He settled Summer into the backseat of his car while Kirsten hurriedly tried to tell him what the doctor had said. He cut her off saying, "I have already spoken to her doctor." He then turned to Kirsten and said "I don't know what the hell is going on here, but I can't believe you would allow this … felon to sleep next to my injured daughter."

Kirsten opened her mouth to protest, but Neal didn't give her a chance. "I don't want you anywhere near my daughter," he said to Ryan. "Do you understand?" Ryan took a few steps back and nodded. "If there is anything we can do to help…" Kirsten started to say. "Thank you, but we will be fine," Neal said as he slammed the car door shut.

Kirsten put her arm around Ryan as they watched the car drive away. "I shouldn't have … I didn't mean to," Ryan stopped. He wasn't even sure what he was apologizing for. "You didn't do anything wrong Ryan, Neal can be difficult." Kirsten said. As they walked back inside the house, Kirsten hoped that Neal would not deal with this the same way he dealt with his wife leaving, which was to shut everyone else out. She knew that Summer would need her friends to get her through this and she prayed that Neal would realize that.

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So what do you think? I have enough plot left for a couple more chapters so if you guys are still out there, let me know.


	10. 10

Thanks for the feedback. It's like writing fuel. I guess there are still some people out there reading. Which is good, I would like to keep writing cause otherwise my workdays go very slowly (I am totally just kidding IT department, I would never use my computer for anything non-work related!)

Oh yea, and thanks to Cassy, whose review the other day got me out of my end of winter malaise and writing again.

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The throbbing pain from Summer's ankle woke her up. She swore and looked over at the clock. 5am. Time didn't mean much to Summer anymore; it just passed as she holed up in her room trying to hide from it. She had thought that the worst of it was when most of the student body saw Zach kick her ass, but that was before she realized that most of the school had picture phones. Several people even had video phones. Normally, it would be only the Harbor students and maybe some students from surrounding high schools that would care to see the pictures and videos of Summer on a backboard being placed into an ambulance and Zach being led away in handcuffs.

Zach, however, was the son of a United States Senator who had devoted his career to family values and moral righteousness. Those that had fallen prey to his ethical witch hunt were only too happy to discuss how his son had been arrested on domestic violence charges. This was not the way Summer had planned on getting famous. How had her life gotten so out of control? Just a week ago she was a happy and normal high school student, her only major concerns involved math tests and wardrobe decisions. Now most of the nation knew her as a "victim of abuse," or "that poor girl that the senator's son beat up." Apparently the story had even been on Entertainment Tonight and CNN.

Summer sighed and shifted her weight to take pressure of her ankle. She had never broken a bone before and now in a span of a week, she had a broken ankle, a broken nose, and three cracked ribs. She was in quite a bit of pain, but she didn't want to take anymore painkillers. She had been content to take her painkillers and drift in and out of consciousness on Thursday and Friday, but when she woke up this morning, she felt different. She knew that she had been using the painkillers as an escape, so that she didn't have to face reality.

Reality pretty much sucked right now. "Reality", Summer groaned out loud. Reality was the fact that her boyfriend, who she had trusted and perhaps loved, had kicked her ass in front of the entire school, and through the miracle of technology, the entire country. How am I going to go back to school? Summer wondered. She couldn't even imagine how bad it was going to be. Everyone was already gossiping about her and staring at her and that was before the big show. Several of Summer friends from school had called to see how she was doing, but Summer hadn't talked to them. She had a feeling they were just digging for gossip anyway. Summer knew who her real friends were.

The only people Summer had seen since Wednesday was her dad, step-mom, and Marissa. Her dad had become ultra protective of her since she had gotten home from the Cohen's. Unfortunately, his idea of protection was to lock Summer in her house and take away her cell phone. He wouldn't even allow any visitors except Marissa. Summer would have liked to talk to Seth and Ryan, but her father didn't like either one of them, so she didn't have much hope that she would see them anytime soon. Plus, she thought that there might be tension between her and Seth and Ryan.

That was another thing that Summer had been trying to avoid thinking about. Seth and Ryan. Six months ago, Summer had been convinced that she would be in love with Seth forever and that they would get back together. She had started dating Zach as a diversion, but she had gradually grown to really care about him, and her feelings for Seth had been pushed farther back in her mind. Now when she closed her eyes, it was Ryan that she saw. He was the one who had taken care of her injuries that night after the party and he was the one who slept in her uncomfortable chair to make sure she was ok. She liked his quiet strength and the way she felt when she woke up next to him. She also liked the way he had softly, yet confidently told her that her loved her before she was wheeled out of her hospital room.

Ryan lay on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He had been in a daze for the last several days. He didn't go to school on Thursday and when he went today some people treated him as a hero, but mainly they just stared and pointed. Ryan was used to the staring and pointing, but being called a hero took some getting used to. Dr. Kim had called him to the office and had a long talk with him. Actually it was more of a talk at him, since Ryan just sat quietly as she went on and on. Ryan got the gist of it though. The school couldn't discipline him since he was trying to protect Summer, but they were concerned about Ryan's continued use of violence.

"You can understand how the trustee's of Harbor are concerned about the school's image. We pride ourselves on offering a safe environment in which gifted students are able to learn without fear of violence. We understand that you were acting to protect Ms. Roberts, but once again you were involved in a violent situation. This cannot keep happening." Dr. Kim dropped her voice and leaned closer to Ryan. "Personally though, I am glad that you were there to help Summer and I think Zach got what he deserved," she whispered conspiratorially. She sat back in her chair and reverted back to her authoritarian voice. "We are especially concerned now that the story has been picked up by the national media." Ryan nodded as Dr. Kim handed him the morning's newspaper. Ryan hadn't seen it yet. He had stayed in the pool house until the last possible second and then bolted for school. Ryan looked down at the paper and began reading.

_Senator's Son Attacks Girlfriend at School._

_Zach Johnston, son of Senator Johnston, a 2nd term democrat from California, brutally attacked his girlfriend, Summer Roberts, at Harbor High School in Newport Beach on Wednesday afternoon. The attack took place after school and was witnessed by a large group of students who were leaving campus for the day. _

_Witnesses report that one student, Ryan Atwood, ran from the crowd and tackled the attacker. He pulled Zach away from his girlfriend and began punching him. Security guards were quickly on scene to contain the situation. _

_Senator Johnston, who has long been known for his zealous pursuit of ethical and moral responsibility issued the following statement. "I am deeply saddened and troubled by my son's actions. These actions are not the actions of the son that I have raised. In no way do I condone violence such as this. On behalf of my family, I would like to apologize to Ms. Roberts for Zach's inexcusable actions and for the pain suffering that they have caused. Dating violence is a serious issue among our youth today and perhaps this terrible situation can help bring attention to this issue."_

_Johnston was held at the Youth Detention and Diagnostic Center for 24 hours and was released into the custody of his parents pending the upcoming legal actions. Ryan Atwood will not be charged for assaulting Zach. Atwood, who has a colorful criminal past himself, recently moved to Newport and was adopted by one of the counties wealthy and powerful families. _

Ryan was still angry about the way it had become such a big story. It was painfully ironic that Summer hadn't gone to the police after the first time because she was afraid people would find out. Now practically everyone in the country knew. Ryan wondered how Summer was holding up. He really wanted to talk to her, but when he had tried to call her father had told him not to call again and had hung up on him. Seth's luck hadn't been any better. Marissa had been over to see Summer, but she said that Summer was pretty much sleeping all the time.

"Hey Ryan," Seth from the door of the pool house, interrupting Ryan's thoughts. "Mom and Dad want to you come in for lunch," Ryan shook his head and said, "I'm not…" Seth had been expecting this response and quickly said, "Sorry man, you don't really have a choice. If you don't come in, we are all coming out." Ryan sighed and got up off the bed. He had been avoiding everyone for the last two days, spending the time brooding in his room. Sandy and Kirsten must have had enough of his brooding as they were both waiting for him in the kitchen.

"Oh my God, it's alive!" Sandy said as Ryan walked into the kitchen. Ryan gave him a halfhearted smile. "Sandy," Kirsten said sternly as she walked over and gave Ryan a hug. She knew that Ryan was having a hard time, but she didn't realize how bad he looked. Ryan had dark circles under his eyes from not sleeping and Kirsten thought he looked like he had lost weight. "Seth grilled burgers for us and I made potato salad." She thought that Ryan might make a joke about her making potato salad, but he just sat down and said, "Great."

They ate quickly, the silence broken only by Sandy's and Seth's attempts at jokes. Finally Kirsten could take it any longer. "Ryan," Kirsten stopped to clear her throat and then continued. "Honey we are worried about you." Ryan looked Kirsten straight in the eyes and said, "I'm not the one you should be worried about." Kirsten put her hand over his, "You are worried about Summer." Ryan pulled his hand out from under Kirsten's. "Of course I am, this whole thing is crazy, especially with all the media attention and Marissa has been the only person allowed to see Summer. We haven't even been able to talk to her." Seth nodded and said, "He is right mom, we have to do something."

Sandy and Kirsten looked at each other. They had discussed how they were going to handle this situation and had decided not to get involved unless there was a very good reason. "I understand that you guys are upset, but Neal is her father and we have to respect his decision." Sandy said, not quite sure he believed what he was saying. "Are you guys serious?" Seth asked incredulously. "Summer is going through a major crisis and the only person that she can talk to about it is Marissa Cooper? Granted Marissa's had a few surprising moments of clarity and wisdom lately, but I think she's used them all up." Kirsten though for a moment and then looked at Sandy and said, "He does a point, maybe I should go over there." Seth and Ryan waited quietly and hopefully for Sandy's answer. "Ok, we will go over there this afternoon," he said. "Sandy, I think it would be better if I went alone, you and Neal have never really gotten along…" Sandy interrupted, "That was a long time ago, and besides I was right. Neal never treated Cynthia very well." Kirsten silenced him with a sharp look and said, "I will go over there this afternoon, and I will go alone."

Summer laid on her bed staring up at her ceiling. She had spent the last two days doing pretty much the same thing and had come to the conclusion that her ceiling was boring. If she at least had a sky light or something to distract her, or maybe a tv in the ceiling like her dentist had when she was little. She used to trip out on nitrous and watch Disney movies while she got her cavities filled. Summer had already watched several episodes of The Valley and had sunk so low that she was watching 90210 and Melrose

Place reruns on the Soap channel. It had been fun to make fun of their clothes, but now she was tired of tv. Now she had nothing to do but think. Summer had tried to avoid thinking, but now she was out of entertainment and had to finally face herself.

"Summer," she heard Marissa call from outside her door. "Are you awake?" Marissa asked as she opened the door. "Oh my god, are you watching 90210?" Marissa asked as she sat down on the bed next to her. "Yea, it's the one where Dylan and Kelly hook up at the beach while Brenda is in Paris." Marissa laughed. "Your dad told me to tell you that he and the monster are going out for a while and you can call him if you need anything." Summer smiled, "Some time without my dad will be nice. He doesn't really know what to do about all this. One minute he is threatening to kill Zach and the next minute he is asking how I could let this happen." Summer stopped. She hadn't known what to answer when her father asked how she could let his happen. That was the question she as having the most trouble with.

"Have you taken any painkillers today?" Marissa asked as she pulled a bottle of vodka out of her bag." Summer shook her head, "No I haven't had one since last night. I thought that maybe I should like face reality today or something, but reality kinda sucks." Marissa took a drink of vodka and studied Summer. Summer looked terrible. Her face was full of bruises that were now almost every color of the rainbow. The older bruises had turned into a muddy brown color, while the new ones were still bright shades of purple and blue. "Yea, reality does suck. I would advise you to put off dealing with it as long as you can," Marissa said as she offered Summer the bottle. Summer took a quick swig.

"Lets go downstairs, I am sick of being in my room and I don't feel like drinking this straight with no chaser." Marissa picked up Summer's crutches and handed them to Summer. Summer groaned. "I hate these things, I can barely make them work." Marissa carefully helped Summer down the stairs and into the living room. "What do you want to drink?" Marissa asked. "How about a Diet Coke for a chaser and a couple shot glasses." Summer replied.

Several shots later, Summer and Marissa were laughing about the ridiculous fashions Summer had seen on 90210 and Melrose Place. "Do you think people will look back on us in 10 years and laugh at what we are wearing?" Summer asked. Marissa looked at Summer's outfit and replied, "Well sweatpants and tank tops don't really go out of style." Summer playfully swatted at Marissa, "Well I laugh at some of the stuff you wore last year." Marissa pretended to be hurt, but she couldn't hide her laughter. Suddenly Summer stopped laughing and grabbed her side. "Shit!"

"Are you ok?" Marissa asked, suddenly concerned about her friend. "Yea, I just don't think I can laugh anymore today. It hurts." Summer replied. "But, I think this will help." She said as she took another shot. She had a pretty good buzz going, which was probably helped by the fact that she hadn't really had any food for a couple days. Marissa seemed to be pretty buzzed as well and Summer suspected she had had a few drinks before she came over. "So have you talked to Ryan?" Summer asked. She had promised herself she wasn't going to ask Marissa about Ryan, but she couldn't help it. "Yea, he is pretty worried about you. He's tried to call, but your dad always hangs up on him. You could call him now," Marissa offered. Summer hesitated, she really wanted to talk to Ryan, but what she needed to tell him couldn't be said over the phone. "That's ok, I would rather see him in person."

For a moment, Summer considered telling Marissa what Ryan had said to her in the hospital. Instead she asked, "So what has it been like at school?" Marissa looked at her friend and decided that Summer wasn't ready to deal with that yet. "Things will probably die down by the time you get back," Marissa lied. "Yea right," Summer said as she rolled her eyes. She knew that this would be one of the main topics of conversation for the rest of the year unless something else happened. "Are you sure you don't want to OD in TJ again? Or maybe Ryan could steal another car?" Summer suggested

"He would probably do that for you," Marissa said. "So it ah … said in the paper this morning that Zach is out of Juvi and back home until the court stuff is sorted out." Marissa could tell by Summer's surprised look that she hadn't known about this. "He is out of Juvi already?" Summer asked her voice suddenly shaky. She had just assumed that Zach would be locked up for a while. She wasn't worried about him hurting her again, there was no way that could happen, she just couldn't believe that he could attack her like that and spend less that two days in jail.

"I … I have to go to the bathroom." Summer stood up too quickly, forgetting about the cast on her ankle. "Shit!" She cried as a wave of pain shot up her leg. Marissa jumped up and grabbed the crutches. "Here," she said. "Let me help you." She took Summer's arm and steadied her. "Are you ok?" Marissa asked wishing she hadn't told Summer about Zach. "Yea, it's just all that vodka." Marissa stared after Summer thinking that she had probably done more harm than good today. Marissa took another shot as the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!" she called, her voice starting to slur.

Marissa opened the door and found Kirsten waiting on the other side. "Uhh … hi Kirsten." Oh crap, Marissa thought wishing she had at least thought to hide the vodka. "May I come in?" Kirsten asked politely "Yea sure, Summer's dad isn't here though." Marissa said as Kirsten stepped into the house. Marissa watched Kirsten's eyes sweep across the room and stop on the table with the shot glasses and bottle. "That's ok, I actually came to check on Summer."


	11. 11

Well, I know its been a while since my last update. Hopefully, there are still some people who want to read this story. Life keeps getting in the way of fanfic. Sigh. I will also be updating Thicker Than Water next week, I promise.

As I was reading back through the entire story, I noticed quite a few grammatical errors and typos. As an English major each error is like a dagger to my heart, but if I took the time to fully revise and edit each chapter they would never get posted.

xxxxx

"We were just … um … well." Marissa fell silent as she saw a look of consternation flash across Kirsten's face. She dropped her head and sighed. Now she knew for sure that she had done more harm than good today.

"Where is Summer?" Kirsten asked trying to figure out how she was going to handle this situation.

"She's in the bathroom. I think she might be sick or something." Marissa replied as she rubbed her temples. She was starting to get a headache. "This way," Marissa said as she set off down the hallway. Kirsten followed closely behind her.

"Summer, are you ok?" Marissa asked after knocking on the bathroom door. Summer didn't reply, but they could hear her throwing up. Kirsten opened the door and stepped inside.

"Oh Summer," Kirsten said once inside the large bathroom. Summer was sitting on the floor in front of the toilet, her leg with the cast on it was sprawled awkwardly across the floor. Summer turned towards Kirsten and Marissa and opened her mouth to speak, but instead she hurriedly turned back towards the toiled. Kirsten crossed the room and knelt next to Summer. Kirsten held her hair back as Summer continued to be sick. Kirsten could tell that the contents of Summer's stomach were mainly vodka and coke. Kirsten turned back to Marissa and gave her a look that said, "Why?"

Marissa felt terrible. She wanted to help so she tried to grab a washcloth so that she could wash Summer's face, but she was pretty drunk by this time and she fell into Kirsten whose weight landed on Summer's ankle. "Ow!" Summer cried, grabbing at her ankle. She hadn't had enough alcohol to completely dull the pain. Kirsten put her hand on Summer's back to try and steady her.

Kirsten turned to Marissa and said sharply, "Marissa!" Marissa took several steps back. Kirsten took a deep breath and said, "Go wait in the living room until we are done here." Marissa nodded and headed out of the bathroom. "Marissa," Kirsten called. Marissa appeared in the doorway. "Why don't you clean up from your little party before Neal gets home." Kirsten suggested before turning her attention back to Summer.

"I'm sorry Summer," Marissa said quietly as she left the room. Summer didn't answer, but she looked up at Marissa and Marissa saw the tears in her eyes. It was obvious that Summer was in a lot of pain.

Kirsten shifted her position and said to Summer, "Lay back and try to relax. Take some deep breaths." Summer leaned back against Kirsten and did as she was told. After several minutes Summer's breathing began to steady. "Do you still feel sick?" Kirsten asked.

"No, I think I am ok now." Summer said, suddenly aware of the fact that she was sitting on the cold bathroom tile being held by Kirsten Cohen. She slid away from Kirsten and said, "I'm sorry … I." Summer stopped. What the hell was she supposed to say to Kirsten? Summer was mortified that Kirsten had found her on the bathroom floor, drunk and throwing up, but she had to admit that it had been nice to have a mother to hold her and take care of her, even if it was only for a few minutes. She had always admired Kirsten. Kirsten always seemed so perfect and in control. Summer was sure that Kirsten had never been found on the floor of her bathroom beaten, drunk, and throwing up. What would Kirsten think of her now?

"It's ok sweetie," Kirsten said as she stood up to get a washcloth. Kirsten gently washed Summer's face and helped her to her feet.

"Is Marissa still here? She shouldn't drive." Summer said.

Kirsten stuck her head out of the bathroom and yelled, "Marissa?" They were both relieved when Marissa answered. "Summer, when is your dad coming back?" Kirsten asked, trying to figure out what she should do with both girls.

"They won't be back for a few hours." Summer tried to get her crutches situated, but she was still a bit dizzy and was having trouble working them. Kirsten walked over to her and without saying a word, she took the crutches, set them aside and slipped her arm under Summer's to support her.

"Do you want me to call your dad?" Kirsten asked as they slowly made their way down the hallway.

"No, please don't." Summer said softly, trying not to look at Kirsten as she answered.

"Alright, well let's get you upstairs to bed and then I will take Marissa home." Kirsten said. When Marissa saw Kirsten and Summer coming down the hall she jumped up to help. Kirsten was quick to wave her off saying, "We've got it Marissa. I am going to get Summer upstairs and then I will take you home."

Marissa took several steps back. "I don't need you to take me home." She began to gather her stuff. The last thing Marissa needed right now was Kirsten telling Julie and Caleb all about her drunken afternoon. Things had finally settled into a tenuous peace at home and this would definitely disrupt that. Marissa grabbed her stuff and headed for the door. "I'll call you later Sum."

"Marissa stop!" Kirsten commanded. "You have been drinking and you are not going to drive."

"I've only had a few drinks. I'm fine to drive." Marissa paused and looked straight at Kirsten. "You know how it is." Kirsten took a deep breath, trying to stifle the urge to strangle Marissa, but before she could respond Summer spoke.

"Maris, please." Was all that Summer said, but it was enough.

"Ok. Fine. I'll just wait here," Marissa said as she flopped back onto the couch.

"Keys," Kirsten said as she held out her hand. Marissa rolled her eyes and threw her keys to Kirsten.

Getting Summer up the stairs was not very easy. It didn't help that Summer was drunk and that Kirsten only outweighed her by about ten pounds. "Is there anything else I can get you?" Kirsten asked as she placed a glass of water on the nightstand next to Summer's bed. Summer shook her head.

"Mrs. Cohen," Summer began.

"Please call me Kirsten."

"Ok. Kirsten, I'm really sorry about all this." Summer could feel her eyes welling up with tears. Not again she thought, willing the tears not to fall. "I know that you have enough stuff to deal with without all of my drama."

Kirsten sat on the bed next to Summer. "I came here today because I was worried about you. We were worried about you and we want to help. Ryan and Seth are going crazy, I'm surprised one of them didn't pop out of the trunk when I got here." At the mention of Ryan and Seth, Summer seemed to perk up.

"I wanted to call, but I don't know what to say." Summer wasn't sure how much Kirsten knew about her and Ryan. She had let Ryan sleep with Summer so she must know that there is something between them. "How is Ryan dealing with all of this? I mean, my dad was such an asshole to him and I know he feels guilty because he didn't tell you guys or the police." Summer stopped to whip a tear from her cheek. "Will you please make sure he knows that none of this was his fault?" Summer requested plaintively.

Kirsten sighed, she didn't want to tell Summer that Ryan wasn't dealing with this very well, the poor girl had enough to deal with. "Ryan is worried about you. I think he would feel better if he could see you, or at the very least, talk to you."

Summer dropped her head and said quietly. "I need to talk to him, but I can't say what I need to over the phone, and my dad won't let anyone but Marissa come near me."

Kirsten had had enough. She was going to give Neal a piece of her mind. Summer needed to be with her friends right now and locking her in the house and pretending that nothing had happened was making things worse. Kirsten took Summer's hand. "I am going to take Marissa home and then I will come back and speak with your father."

"No, I can't ask you to do that. This is my problem and I will deal with it."

Kirsten smiled, "It's for my benefit too, you have no idea how hard it is to live with Seth and Ryan right now." They both laughed. "Are you going to be alright here by yourself?" Kirsten asked concerned.

"Yea, I think I will probably just sleep." Kirsten stood up and walked toward the door. "Kirsten," Summer said. Kirsten stopped and turned around to face Summer. "What you did today was … well it meant a lot. Thanks."

The ride to Marissa's house was uncomfortably silent. Marissa knew that she had screwed up big time and now she was just waiting to see how much trouble she was going to get in. When they pulled up in front of the house, Marissa was relieved when Kirsten didn't get out of the car.

Kirsten looked at Marissa and said, "I don't think I really need to say anything, do I?"

Marissa shook her head. "No," she said softly, "I know I screwed up; I just wanted to help."

"I know this is hard, but promise me that from now on you won't try to help anyone with alcohol." Kirsten said as she handed Marissa back her keys.

"Dude, this waiting is killing me." Seth said as he walked into the pool house. Ryan was laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He didn't answer Seth, so Seth just kept talking. "At least come inside and play PS2 with me. I think the Playstation is starting to feel a little neglected."

"Well go play it then," Ryan said brusquely. Ryan saw Seth's face fall. "I'm sorry man, I'm just … I'm not very good company right now." Ryan felt bad. Seth was having a hard time too and he had been pretty cool about Ryan and Summer. Ryan stood up and put his hand on Seth's shoulder. "I just need some time alone right now, but I promise we will spend some quality time with the Playstation tonight."

"Ok man," Seth said, still a little hurt by Ryan's actions, "Just be careful not to overdose on brooding." Seth slowly walked back towards the house.

As Kirsten drove away from her father's home, she made a decision. It probably wasn't the wisest decision or most responsible choice that she could make, but it was what she felt she needed to do. Kirsten grabbed her cell phone and dialed.

"Ryan, I am coming to pick you up. Neal is out for a bit and I am going to take you to see Summer." Kirsten said hurriedly. After a moment of silence from the other end of the line she added, "If you want to, of course."

"Yea," Ryan said, his heart suddenly beating faster. Kirsten would be here in a couple minutes and then he would see Summer. Ryan was glad he had taken a shower last night, now if he could just find some clean clothes.

Ryan jumped into the car when Kirsten pulled up along the street. "What about Seth?" Ryan asked.

"I think it's probably better if it is just you for now." Kirsten replied. Seth would be angry when he found out that she had taken Ryan to see Summer, but Kirsten would deal with that later. Right now Seth was in the best shape of the three. She hoped that her son could be adult about this and realize that helping Summer is the first priority.

Ryan stared out the window at the water as they drove towards Summer's house. He could tell that Kirsten was upset and he noticed that her eyes seemed red, as if she had been crying. Summer must be pretty messed up if Kristen was going to sneak him in to see her.

"Are you sure about this?" Ryan asked, watching as Kirsten nervously tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. "I mean, Summer's dad hates me."

"He doesn't hate you, he just doesn't know you." Kirsten said as she turned into Summer's driveway. Kirsten parked the car and turned towards Ryan. "Do you love her?" She asked.

"Yea," Ryan said, "I do."

"Ok, then you go upstairs and tell her that and I will worry about Neal." They walked up to the front door together. Ryan stopped before he went in and gave Kirsten a quick hug.

"Thanks," he said before running up the stairs to Summer's room. Ryan paused and took a deep breath before he knocked on Summer's bedroom door.

"Come in," Summer said, her voice muffled by sleep. "Ryan!" She said when he stepped into the room. "What are you doing here?"

"Kirsten brought me. She thought you might like some company." Ryan said, smiling for the first time in days. He walked over to the bed and kissed Summer on the forehead before he sat down. "How are you doing?" Ryan asked, concerned. Summer looked pale and he could smell alcohol on her breath.

"Better now that you are here." Summer replied. She sat up, trying to clear the sleep and alcohol out of her head. "Is my dad home?"

"Not yet. So what happened this afternoon?" Ryan asked as he took Summer's hand.

Summer closed her eyes. "Nothing good. Marissa and I were drinking and I got sick and then Kirsten came over." Summer didn't know how Ryan would react to the news that she and Marissa had gotten drunk. Ryan drank occasionally, but he had had problems with Marissa's drinking in the past. "It's not Marissa's fault though. I just couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to stop thinking."

Ryan felt his throat tighten up. He wanted to say something to reassure Summer, but nothing came to mind, so he took her in his arms and held her instead. As he stroked her back, her could feel her body relax and sink into his. After several minutes of silence Ryan said, "We'll figure something out. I promise it's going to get better." Ryan pulled back from Summer and looked into her eyes. "I love you Summer."

"I love you too Ryan," Summer said. Ryan leaned over and kissed Summer, careful not to hurt Summer's still bruised face. Suddenly, they heard voices from downstairs.

"Oh shit! My dad is home."


End file.
